The Airbus widebody family of flight test aircraft, the A380, A330 and the all-new A350 XWB, took off from Toulouse today flying together for the first time before continuing on separate flight test missions.

Airbus’ full range of modern, widebody aircraft – from the versatile A330, to the super-efficient A350 XWB and the flagship A380 – not only cover all the requirements of airlines around the world whatever the range or payload capabilities, but also deliver the best economics today while providing highest environmental standards and unmatched passenger comfort.

Across all its aircraft families, both widebody and single-aisle, Airbus’ unique design approach ensures that the aircraft share the highest commonality in airframes, on-board systems, cockpits and handling characteristics. This significantly reduces operating costs for airlines as pilot, crew and maintenance training times are shorter. Crew management is also more flexible for airlines as they can move pilots and crews easily from one Airbus aircraft to the other.