It could be argued that the neo (new engine option) line-up of Airbus aircraft - particularly the A320neo family - is one of the best decisions the planemaker has made in its history of building commercial jets. Revising its existing A320 family greatly boosted aircraft efficiency and gave it a competitive edge over Boeing, all without the higher development costs of a clean-sheet design. This strategy was also carried to its older widebody, the A330, although it hasn't seen the same runaway success. Could Airbus one day do this to the A350 and offer an A350neo?

The (real) newest member of the Airbus family

In terms of clean sheet designs, the A350 is one of the newest members of the Airbus family. Yes, the Bombardier CSeries launched after it and also joined Airbus as the A220 more recently, but as far as pure Airbus designs go, the A350 is the latest.

The aircraft first flew in 2013 and entered service with Qatar Airways in 2015. Therefore, it could be argued that the widebody is still too new to need a new engine option as its technologies are already fairly current. However, it's guaranteed that this won't last forever.

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Boeing is roughly two years away from the first delivery of its 777X, an aircraft that boasts huge efficiency and capacity gains. Airbus will want to ensure its A350-1000, the most direct rival to the 777-9 in its offerings, can offer similar numbers and airlines that are customers already aren't lured away by the newest 777.

However, the idea of an A350neo is not something vague and futuristic, Airbus has been seriously considering the proposition for several years now, and engine makers like GE have been floated for the project.

Recruiting designers and engineers

It was actually in November 2018 when the idea of the A350neo was first floated. By 2019, it was revealed that Airbus and GE were discussing a new engine for the A350, perhaps one derived from the massive GE9X powerplant. COVID quickly dashed any notion of a quick design process, and everything new was put on the back burner.

However, we are now out of the dark days of the pandemic and in an era of massive aircraft orders and passenger demand. With widebodies keeping busy in the skies globally, the A380 edging closer to retirement, and the 777X on the horizon, Airbus might well be considering reviving the A350neo project.

While the A330neo, pictured above, features the Rolls-Royce Trent 7000 engines, the A350neo is likely to see GE engines, given the previous engagement between the pair. However, any discussion right now is pure speculation. Simple Flying has reached out to Airbus for comment and will update this story when one is available.

For reference, in 2019, Airbus told us the following about the A350neo:

"As a leading aircraft manufacturer we are always looking into advancing our aircraft / offerings to the benefit of our customers, keep our aircraft on the leading edge, [and] enhancing value. There is no pressure as the A350 is today is the aircraft of choice (given its unprecedented track record and excellent customer feedback)."

New engine technology on the horizon

GE, Safran, Rolls-Royce, and Pratt & Whitney are all working on their future engine designs that promise massive gains for airlines. For the current A350 supplier, Rolls-Royce is working on its Ultrafan engine, which is the largest one ever built, and made its first demonstrator test in May. The Ultrafan promises a 10% efficiency gain over the Trent XWB and 25% of the first-generation Trent engines.

Of course, GE is still working to perfect its 9X, the largest one set for commercial service and one which has faced some issues during testing. However, once all the snags are fixed, expect to see the GE9X quickly take over the record books and give airlines new levels of performance.

What do you think? Will we see an A350neo from Airbus? And when do you think this might be? Share your thoughts by leaving a comment.