Airbus has revealed the initial design concepts behind its next-generation single-aisle aircraft, as it develops a successor for its best-selling A320 Neo family of jets and focuses on decarbonisation.
Over a two-day Airbus Summit in Toulouse this week, the world’s biggest plane maker highlighted proposals on key technology for the new aircraft, including propulsion systems, wing design, advanced composition materials, electrification, automation and connectivity. This is part of aviation's “fourth revolution” to make flying more sustainable, Airbus executives said.
“We cannot do it with incremental optimisation, this will come with disruption, this will come through clean sheet design,” Bruno Fichefeux, head of future programmes at Airbus, told the innovation summit.
The new aircraft, which will be able to fly entirely on sustainable aviation fuel (SAF), will target a 20 per cent to 30 per cent fuel-burn reduction compared with the models flying today, thanks to developments in wing design, engines and systems.
“It’s a research and technology phase, where we mature many technologies, and when we combine them together we need to look at what are the best trade-offs – which paths do we open, which do we close? We are not there yet,” Mr Fichefeux said.
Lighter but stronger advanced composite materials will be used to build lighter aircraft, allowing for a “substantial” reduction in mass. That will lead to an increase in fuel efficiency.
Folding wings
Longer, thinner and narrower wings will be another feature of the new narrow-body. To ensure the aircraft fits into existing airport gates, it will also feature folded wing-tips. The design draws on principles of “biomimicry”, where engineers study and imitate the flight of birds. Mimicking the flight of the albatross, the aircraft will have a longer wingspan in flight, increasing lift and reducing drag.
The Airbus Wing Of Tomorrow programme in the UK is designing the technology to fold the wings.
One of the big challenges is making sure that the folding wing system works reliably, ensuring that they are aerodynamically and structurally efficient. This is important given that today the Airbus A320 family aircraft takes off or lands every two seconds, said Sue Partridge, head of Wing of Tomorrow programme and UK country manager at Airbus.
“The demand for single-aisle aircraft is huge today and will be huge in future, so we need to make our aircraft and wings at high rate and at cost that's sustainable for our business,” she said. “Industrialisation of our new technologies is absolutely key.”
The programme has completed two of three full-scale wing demonstrators. “As for our folding wing technology, we are putting that through its paces today in our test centres,” said Ms Partridge.
Engine tests by end of decade
For the engines, Airbus is exploring several options, but the main contender is the open fan engine concept, in which fan blades that generate thrust are larger and not contained by a nacelle, the cowling that contains the fan in current-generation engines. This allows air to move efficiently through the engine, reducing fuel consumption, Airbus said.
Engine maker CFM, a joint venture between France's Safran and GE Aerospace, is working on the Revolutionary Innovation for Sustainable Engines (RISE) open fan engine demonstrator, which aims to show how this technology could reduce fuel consumption and carbon emissions by 20 per cent compared with current single-aisle aircraft.
Airbus is planning to perform flight tests of the open fan engine on a modified A380 flying test bed by the end of the decade, it said.
The open fan engine is “much more rewarding, much more challenging and much more revolutionary” than the “evolutionary” ducted fan engines, Frank Haselbach, senior vice president of propulsion engineering at Airbus, told the summit.
“We would like the open fan to succeed,” he said. “It shows the biggest potential for the future … but clearly we have to look at our options.”
Christian Scherer, chief executive of the commercial aircraft business of Airbus, said the “jury is out” for the engine technology decision. Airbus will pursue a product that “offers a step-change in economics and environmental signature,” he added.
At an aircraft engine's bypass ratio of 15 or 16, the benefits of a large fan are wiped out by the additional drag created by a very big duct, Mohamed Ali, senior vice president and chief technology and operations officer at GE Aerospace, told the summit. The current bypass ratio on jet engines is at 11 to 12, so that point is not too far.
An open fan design can take the bypass ratio up to 60. “That is the fuel burn opportunity that we are thrilled and excited about,” he added.
A bypass ratio is a key measure of the efficiency and performance of jet engines, referring to the ratio of air bypassing the engine core versus air passing through it.
During the summit, Airbus showcased the concept of a tube-and-wing aircraft that could have either wing-mounted or rear-mounted open fan engines.
Electrification, automation and hybrid-electric propulsion, which supplements the use of conventional jet fuel or SAF with electricity from batteries or fuel cells, are some of the areas Airbus is working on.
“Imagine for one second that we have an aircraft that could onboard during its life-cycle all the technologies that will improve step by step … it will be a game-changer, radically different,” said Karim Mokaddem, head of aircraft of tomorrow research and technology at Airbus. But he acknowledged that “what is in front of us is a huge mountain of challenges, of unknowns”.
Certifying new architecture
Airbus is currently working on “aerodynamic and structural integration” to adapt the aircraft to the open fan engine that will change the plane's aerodynamics and noise levels, Mr Haselbach said.
“We have to adapt the aircraft to that new engine architecture,” he said.
Airbus is also looking “very carefully” at the testing and certification of the new architecture, he added. This includes component tests being conducted now, full-scale ground tests in Ohio later on, and then demonstrating the engine compliance on an A380 flying test bed for propulsion.
Hybridisation, or combining different energy sources instead of relying solely on jet fuel, is another area of work for Airbus, said Mr Haselbach.
The next-generation single-aisle aircraft will use electric systems for taxiing in and out of the airport, make air-conditioning more efficient and anti-icing on the wings to reduce energy consumption, Maud Delourme, head of multi-systems engineering and integration at Airbus, told the summit.
More automation could include the use of artificial intelligence to assist pilots by automatically detecting runways and obstacles to support automatic landing and taxiing at airports, she said.
Passenger experience
“If I had to sell this aircraft to a passenger, I would simply say that it is an aircraft that is radically different in terms of fuel-consumption and therefore it is a sustainable aircraft,” Mr Mokaddem told The National on the sidelines of the summit.
The passenger experience on the aircraft will be much improved, with better connectivity onboard. “If we reach this level of hyper-connectivity, it’s an aircraft on which you will be able not only to work, but also connect and talk to your family, to see your movies,” he added. “The passenger experience will be different.”
One of the most important selling points Airbus is emphasising for airlines is the economic benefits that result from 20 per cent to 30 per cent fuel efficiency.
“We are doing all this because we already know that the added price of SAF will be huge,” he said. “And therefore, if you want to maintain the ambition of connecting people today and even more people tomorrow, we need to propose to the airline something that is reducing the cost of operation, which is likely to increase because of the SAF price. And that’s why we are focusing on the performance of the aircraft.”
Decarbonising aviation
Airbus underlined its efforts to develop new technologies for a future aircraft designed to help decarbonise aviation.
“We want to [fill] this major gap [with the current A320 model] which is not incremental, which is not optimisation,” Mr Fichefeux said. “We need to make sure that these technologies come to maturity and that we can bet our design on, and we are not there yet.
“Our target … would be to introduce an aircraft in the second half of the next decade.”
However, he conceded that “we are not there yet”, in terms of maturing the technologies.
'Gloves off' competition
Airbus chief executive Guillaume Faury said the new aircraft would rely on disrupting technologies and is the “next big thing on the agenda” for the company.
He hinted that developing the next-generation single-aisle plane is likely to heat up competition with its US arch rival, Boeing.
“If you look on the other side of the Atlantic, it's not unlikely that they will look at this product as well. So, it's probably going to be a gloves-off competition for the next generation of single aisle [aircraft],” said Mr Faury.
Who's who in Yemen conflict
Houthis: Iran-backed rebels who occupy Sanaa and run unrecognised government
Yemeni government: Exiled government in Aden led by eight-member Presidential Leadership Council
Southern Transitional Council: Faction in Yemeni government that seeks autonomy for the south
Habrish 'rebels': Tribal-backed forces feuding with STC over control of oil in government territory
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The%20Mother%20
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EDirector%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Niki%20Caro%26nbsp%3B%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EStars%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Jennifer%20Lopez%2C%20Joseph%20Fiennes%2C%20Gael%20Garcia%20Bernal%2C%20Omari%20Hardwick%20and%20Lucy%20Paez%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%203%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Classification of skills
A worker is categorised as skilled by the MOHRE based on nine levels given in the International Standard Classification of Occupations (ISCO) issued by the International Labour Organisation.
A skilled worker would be someone at a professional level (levels 1 – 5) which includes managers, professionals, technicians and associate professionals, clerical support workers, and service and sales workers.
The worker must also have an attested educational certificate higher than secondary or an equivalent certification, and earn a monthly salary of at least Dh4,000.
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MATCH INFO
Mainz 0
RB Leipzig 5 (Werner 11', 48', 75', Poulsen 23', Sabitzer 36')
Man of the Match: Timo Werner (RB Leipzig)
Poacher
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EDirector%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ERichie%20Mehta%26nbsp%3B%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarring%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Nimisha%20Sajayan%2C%20Roshan%20Mathew%2C%20Dibyendu%20Bhattacharya%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E3%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Desert Warrior
Starring: Anthony Mackie, Aiysha Hart, Ben Kingsley
Director: Rupert Wyatt
Rating: 3/5
White hydrogen: Naturally occurring hydrogen
Chromite: Hard, metallic mineral containing iron oxide and chromium oxide
Ultramafic rocks: Dark-coloured rocks rich in magnesium or iron with very low silica content
Ophiolite: A section of the earth’s crust, which is oceanic in nature that has since been uplifted and exposed on land
Olivine: A commonly occurring magnesium iron silicate mineral that derives its name for its olive-green yellow-green colour
Five%20calorie-packed%20Ramadan%20drinks
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Babumoshai Bandookbaaz
Director: Kushan Nandy
Starring: Nawazuddin Siddiqui, Bidita Bag, Jatin Goswami
Three stars
Engine: 3.5-litre V6
Transmission: eight-speed automatic
Power: 290hp
Torque: 340Nm
Price: Dh155,800
On sale: now
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
It's up to you to go green
Nils El Accad, chief executive and owner of Organic Foods and Café, says going green is about “lifestyle and attitude” rather than a “money change”; people need to plan ahead to fill water bottles in advance and take their own bags to the supermarket, he says.
“People always want someone else to do the work; it doesn’t work like that,” he adds. “The first step: you have to consciously make that decision and change.”
When he gets a takeaway, says Mr El Accad, he takes his own glass jars instead of accepting disposable aluminium containers, paper napkins and plastic tubs, cutlery and bags from restaurants.
He also plants his own crops and herbs at home and at the Sheikh Zayed store, from basil and rosemary to beans, squashes and papayas. “If you’re going to water anything, better it be tomatoes and cucumbers, something edible, than grass,” he says.
“All this throwaway plastic - cups, bottles, forks - has to go first,” says Mr El Accad, who has banned all disposable straws, whether plastic or even paper, from the café chain.
One of the latest changes he has implemented at his stores is to offer refills of liquid laundry detergent, to save plastic. The two brands Organic Foods stocks, Organic Larder and Sonnett, are both “triple-certified - you could eat the product”.
The Organic Larder detergent will soon be delivered in 200-litre metal oil drums before being decanted into 20-litre containers in-store.
Customers can refill their bottles at least 30 times before they start to degrade, he says. Organic Larder costs Dh35.75 for one litre and Dh62 for 2.75 litres and refills will cost 15 to 20 per cent less, Mr El Accad says.
But while there are savings to be had, going green tends to come with upfront costs and extra work and planning. Are we ready to refill bottles rather than throw them away? “You have to change,” says Mr El Accad. “I can only make it available.”
SPEC%20SHEET
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EProcessor%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Apple%20M2%2C%208-core%20CPU%2C%20up%20to%2010-core%20CPU%2C%2016-core%20Neural%20Engine%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EDisplay%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%2013.6-inch%20Liquid%20Retina%2C%202560%20x%201664%2C%20224ppi%2C%20500%20nits%2C%20True%20Tone%2C%20wide%20colour%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EMemory%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%208%2F16%2F24GB%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EStorage%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20256%2F512GB%20%2F%201%2F2TB%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EI%2FO%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Thunderbolt%203%20(2)%2C%203.5mm%20audio%2C%20Touch%20ID%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EConnectivity%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Wi-Fi%206%2C%20Bluetooth%205.0%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EBattery%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%2052.6Wh%20lithium-polymer%2C%20up%20to%2018%20hours%2C%20MagSafe%20charging%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ECamera%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%201080p%20FaceTime%20HD%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EVideo%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Support%20for%20Apple%20ProRes%2C%20HDR%20with%20Dolby%20Vision%2C%20HDR10%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EAudio%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%204-speaker%20system%2C%20wide%20stereo%2C%20support%20for%20Dolby%20Atmos%2C%20Spatial%20Audio%20and%20dynamic%20head%20tracking%20(with%20AirPods)%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EColours%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Silver%2C%20space%20grey%2C%20starlight%2C%20midnight%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EIn%20the%20box%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20MacBook%20Air%2C%2030W%20or%2035W%20dual-port%20power%20adapter%2C%20USB-C-to-MagSafe%20cable%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EPrice%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20From%20Dh4%2C999%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
UK’s AI plan
- AI ambassadors such as MIT economist Simon Johnson, Monzo cofounder Tom Blomfield and Google DeepMind’s Raia Hadsell
- £10bn AI growth zone in South Wales to create 5,000 jobs
- £100m of government support for startups building AI hardware products
- £250m to train new AI models
KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
WHAT FANS WILL LOVE ABOUT RUSSIA
FANS WILL LOVE
Uber is ridiculously cheap and, as Diego Saez discovered, mush safer. A 45-minute taxi from Pulova airport to Saint Petersburg’s Nevsky Prospect can cost as little as 500 roubles (Dh30).
FANS WILL LOATHE
Uber policy in Russia is that they can start the fare as soon as they arrive at the pick-up point — and oftentimes they start it even before arriving, or worse never arrive yet charge you anyway.
FANS WILL LOVE
It’s amazing how active Russians are on social media and your accounts will surge should you post while in the country. Throw in a few Cyrillic hashtags and watch your account numbers rocket.
FANS WILL LOATHE
With cold soups, bland dumplings and dried fish, Russian cuisine is not to everybody’s tastebuds. Fortunately, there are plenty Georgian restaurants to choose from, which are both excellent and economical.
FANS WILL LOVE
The World Cup will take place during St Petersburg's White Nights Festival, which means perpetual daylight in a city that genuinely never sleeps. (Think toddlers walking the streets with their grandmothers at 4am.)
FANS WILL LOATHE
The walk from Krestovsky Ostrov metro station to Saint Petersburg Arena on a rainy day makes you wonder why some of the $1.7 billion was not spent on a weather-protected walkway.
THE BIO:
Sabri Razouk, 74
Athlete and fitness trainer
Married, father of six
Favourite exercise: Bench press
Must-eat weekly meal: Steak with beans, carrots, broccoli, crust and corn
Power drink: A glass of yoghurt
Role model: Any good man
Emergency
Director: Kangana Ranaut
Stars: Kangana Ranaut, Anupam Kher, Shreyas Talpade, Milind Soman, Mahima Chaudhry
Rating: 2/5
Results
4.30pm Jebel Jais – Maiden (PA) Dh60,000 (Turf) 1,000m; Winner: MM Al Balqaa, Bernardo Pinheiro (jockey), Qaiss Aboud (trainer)
5pm: Jabel Faya – Maiden (PA) Dh60,000 (T) 1,000m; Winner: AF Rasam, Tadhg O’Shea, Ernst Oertel
5.30pm: Al Wathba Stallions Cup – Handicap (PA) Dh70,000 (T) 2,200m; Winner: AF Mukhrej, Tadhg O’Shea, Ernst Oertel
6pm: The President’s Cup Prep – Conditions (PA) Dh100,000 (T) 2,200m; Winner: Mujeeb, Richard Mullen, Salem Al Ketbi
6.30pm: Abu Dhabi Equestrian Club – Prestige (PA) Dh125,000 (T) 1,600m; Winner: Jawal Al Reef, Antonio Fresu, Abubakar Daud
7pm: Al Ruwais – Group 3 (PA) Dh300,000 (T) 1,200m; Winner: Ashton Tourettes, Pat Dobbs, Ibrahim Aseel
7.30pm: Jebel Hafeet – Maiden (TB) Dh80,000 (T) 1,400m; Winner: Nibraas, Richard Mullen, Nicholas Bachalard
Our House, Louise Candlish,
Simon & Schuster
Trump v Khan
2016: Feud begins after Khan criticised Trump’s proposed Muslim travel ban to US
2017: Trump criticises Khan’s ‘no reason to be alarmed’ response to London Bridge terror attacks
2019: Trump calls Khan a “stone cold loser” before first state visit
2019: Trump tweets about “Khan’s Londonistan”, calling him “a national disgrace”
2022: Khan’s office attributes rise in Islamophobic abuse against the major to hostility stoked during Trump’s presidency
July 2025 During a golfing trip to Scotland, Trump calls Khan “a nasty person”
Sept 2025 Trump blames Khan for London’s “stabbings and the dirt and the filth”.
Dec 2025 Trump suggests migrants got Khan elected, calls him a “horrible, vicious, disgusting mayor”
What is Folia?
Prince Khaled bin Alwaleed bin Talal's new plant-based menu will launch at Four Seasons hotels in Dubai this November. A desire to cater to people looking for clean, healthy meals beyond green salad is what inspired Prince Khaled and American celebrity chef Matthew Kenney to create Folia. The word means "from the leaves" in Latin, and the exclusive menu offers fine plant-based cuisine across Four Seasons properties in Los Angeles, Bahrain and, soon, Dubai.
Kenney specialises in vegan cuisine and is the founder of Plant Food Wine and 20 other restaurants worldwide. "I’ve always appreciated Matthew’s work," says the Saudi royal. "He has a singular culinary talent and his approach to plant-based dining is prescient and unrivalled. I was a fan of his long before we established our professional relationship."
Folia first launched at The Four Seasons Hotel Los Angeles at Beverly Hills in July 2018. It is available at the poolside Cabana Restaurant and for in-room dining across the property, as well as in its private event space. The food is vibrant and colourful, full of fresh dishes such as the hearts of palm ceviche with California fruit, vegetables and edible flowers; green hearb tacos filled with roasted squash and king oyster barbacoa; and a savoury coconut cream pie with macadamia crust.
In March 2019, the Folia menu reached Gulf shores, as it was introduced at the Four Seasons Hotel Bahrain Bay, where it is served at the Bay View Lounge. Next, on Tuesday, November 1 – also known as World Vegan Day – it will come to the UAE, to the Four Seasons Resort Dubai at Jumeirah Beach and the Four Seasons DIFC, both properties Prince Khaled has spent "considerable time at and love".
There are also plans to take Folia to several more locations throughout the Middle East and Europe.
While health-conscious diners will be attracted to the concept, Prince Khaled is careful to stress Folia is "not meant for a specific subset of customers. It is meant for everyone who wants a culinary experience without the negative impact that eating out so often comes with."
Dust and sand storms compared
Sand storm
- Particle size: Larger, heavier sand grains
- Visibility: Often dramatic with thick "walls" of sand
- Duration: Short-lived, typically localised
- Travel distance: Limited
- Source: Open desert areas with strong winds
Dust storm
- Particle size: Much finer, lightweight particles
- Visibility: Hazy skies but less intense
- Duration: Can linger for days
- Travel distance: Long-range, up to thousands of kilometres
- Source: Can be carried from distant regions
Who has been sanctioned?
Daniella Weiss and Nachala
Described as 'the grandmother of the settler movement', she has encouraged the expansion of settlements for decades. The 79 year old leads radical settler movement Nachala, whose aim is for Israel to annex Gaza and the occupied West Bank, where it helps settlers built outposts.
Harel Libi & Libi Construction and Infrastructure
Libi has been involved in threatening and perpetuating acts of aggression and violence against Palestinians. His firm has provided logistical and financial support for the establishment of illegal outposts.
Zohar Sabah
Runs a settler outpost named Zohar’s Farm and has previously faced charges of violence against Palestinians. He was indicted by Israel’s State Attorney’s Office in September for allegedly participating in a violent attack against Palestinians and activists in the West Bank village of Muarrajat.
Coco’s Farm and Neria’s Farm
These are illegal outposts in the West Bank, which are at the vanguard of the settler movement. According to the UK, they are associated with people who have been involved in enabling, inciting, promoting or providing support for activities that amount to “serious abuse”.
