War of the freighters: Boeing B-777X versus Airbus A-350F

It was a programme launched without fanfare and without a launch customer. But Airbus was a success and went ahead with the launch nonetheless. In Dubai it catch-up, has now announced the assessment of the battle of the freighters.

It was a secret that was known to the entire airline industry. The launch of the A350F (freighter) by Airbus at the Dubai airshow. It was a serious move by the European aerospace giant to bring some much-needed competition into the freighter market that is a monopoly of Boeing with the 757s/767s and the 777s dominating the business.

The actual announcement, though, came months earlier in the middle of 2021 soon after the International Air Transport Association (IATA) published data showing that air cargo airlines collectively experienced their strongest half-yearly performance since 2017. Global demand for air cargo during the first six months of 2021 increased by 8 percent above the same period in 2019, according to IATA.

During their earnings call in the middle of the year for the first two quarters, Airbus CEO Guillaume Faury said that the freighter version of the A350 will be a great new option for air cargo operators. “It is our ambition to continuously adapt and evolve our product in line with customer needs, as an example we did it with the A321XLR back in 2019. In that period and following positive customer feedback we obtained the board of directors approval for the freighter derivative of our wellestablished A350 platform. Based on the efficiency of the A350, the freighter version is planned to deliver lower fuel burn compared to freighter versions of that size, for example around 20 percent less fuel burn compared to twins, 20 percent less compared to tri-jets, and 40 percent less compared to quads, fourengine planes,” he told the shareholders.