Qatar Airways became the first airline to operate the Airbus A350 in commercial service in 2015. It introduced the A350-900 on a route from Doha to Frankfurt.
The A350 is a wide-body twin-engine aircraft developed by Airbus for long-haul passenger operations. Its structure makes extensive use of carbon-fibre-reinforced polymer, while its engines and aerodynamic design support lower fuel consumption than many older aircraft.
Qatar Airways received its first A350-900 in December 2014 and began passenger operations on 15 January 2015. The airline later became an important operator of both the A350-900 and the larger A350-1000.
Singapore Airlines was the launch customer for the A350-900ULR, a special ultra-long-range version. That later variant should not be confused with the first standard A350-900 commercial service.