Five years after first announcing the A350F concept to the world, Airbus’ new-generation large freighter has taken to the skies in Toulouse, France.
On September 29, 2026, while broadcasting live to the world through social media, the colossal Airbus A350F, MSN700, took to the runway at Toulouse Blagnac Airport (TLS).
Members of the public, Airbus executives and staff members along with representatives from the world’s media were among those there to watch the historic occasion, as well as thousands more online.
A five-person flight team, comprising two pilots, one test flight engineer (TFE), and two flight test engineers (FTE) were on board the Airbus A350F as it took off.
The aircraft left Toulouse at 10:30, local time, for a four-hour test flight. Airbus has also scheduled a livestream landing at around 13:30. A Dassault Falcon is accompanying the A350F.
During the flight, the A350F will operate as a “flying laboratory, tracking thousands of real-time parameters including aerodynamics, structural loads, and sensor data”.
The parcel-inspired livery adorned across the aircraft was selected following a 2022 competition in which over 4,000 people entered.
Two designs were chosen as winners, which were then combined into one by the Airbus corporate design department.
The aircraft was built across facilities in the United Kingdom, Spain, Germany and France in what Airbus describes as a “global endeavor”.
In the weeks leading up to the first flight, the A350F conducted extensive ground tests including high-speed rejected takeoffs, and test teams performed ‘Virtual First Flights’ in simulators.
Laurent Bussiere, Lead Flight Test Engineer for the A350F program, explained that, despite the A350F being built on the A350-1000 needs, the aircraft still requires extensive testing.
“The A350F presents unique dimensions due to the freighter’s specific fuselage configuration – which is equivalent to an A350-900 forward fuselage [length] mated to an A350-1000 rear fuselage [length] and A350-1000 wings,” Bussiere said. “In turn, this creates a new aerodynamic model which affects flight control, while the new geometry for the landing gear affects ground maneuvering.”
He added: “It’s not an A350-1000 and it’s not an A350-900, but rather it’s between both. So, we need to look at the behavior of the whole system with this unique model. That’s why we go into the development simulator to prepare for the first flight and the subsequent 400 flight-hour flight test campaign.”
Latest figures show that Airbus has secured 115 firm orders for the A350F.
AeroTime will provide further updates on the maiden flight throughout the day.