Airbus confirms that Emirates Airline has decided to cancel its order of 70 A350 XWB aircraft.

The decision follows on-going discussions with the airline in light of their fleet requirement review, as demonstrated by their order of 50 additional A380 at the last Dubai Airshow and their continuous interest in the program. Airbus and Emirates Airline benefit from a long-standing relationship and the airline recently reiterated its confidence in Airbus products particularly by praising the A380 and the benefits the aircraft brings to their operations.

The order of 50 A350-900 and 20 A350-1000 was originally placed by Emirates Airline in 2007 with first delivery slots scheduled from 2019.

Airbus is very confident in its A350 XWB program. Half a year before entry into service, the A350 XWB order book stands at a healthy 742 firm orders. The A350 flight test campaign is progressing well and is on track for Type Certification in the coming months.

Interest in the game changing A350 has always been very high with customers. Airbus expects the A350 order book to continue growing in 2014.

The Airbus A350 XWB is a family of long-range, two-engined wide-body jet airliners developed by European aircraft manufacturer Airbus.

The A350 is the first Airbus with both fuselage and wing structures made primarily of carbon-fiber-reinforced polymer. It can carry 250 to 350 passengers in a typical three-class seating layout, or maximum seating of 440 to 550 passengers, depending on variant.

The A350 was originally conceived in 2004 as a largely new design, but with a fuselage based on the A330. This was rejected by some prospective customers. In 2006, Airbus redesigned the aircraft and renamed it the A350 XWB (extra wide body).

The launch customer for the A350 is Qatar Airways, which ordered 80 aircraft of all three variants. Development costs are projected to be €12 billion (US$15 billion or £10 billion). The airliner is scheduled to enter airline service in 2014. 

As of June 2014, Airbus has received orders for 742 aircraft from 38 customers around the globe (net of a cancellation of 70 aircraft by Emirates). The prototype A350 first flew on 14 June 2013 at Toulouse-Blagnac Airport, France.