First of Airbus's BelugaXLs is placed into service

摘要

Two months after the Airbus BelugaXL gained European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) type certification, the OEM's first whale-shaped oversized air transport entered service, the company announced on January 13. Airbus plans to introduce a further five BelugaXLs by 2023, providing the European airframer the much-needed extra transport capacity it needs to support the ongoing production ramp-up of its commercial aircraft programs. The company delivered 863 aircraft to 99 customers in 2019, outpacing its previous output record set in 2018 by 8 percent and marking the 17th yearly production increase in a row, according to the company. Its backlog at the end of 2019 stood at 7,482 aircraft.