The US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has approved the Airbus A350-900 for ETOPS (Extended-range Twin engine aircraft Operations) “beyond 180 minutes” diversion time. This aircraft has now received the approval from both the FAA and the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA). The approval will allow airlines operating under FAA rules to serve new direct non-limiting routings beyond the standard 180-minute diversion time when they start to take delivery of their A350s in 2017.

The FAA approval, which includes 180-minute ETOPS in the basic specification, also includes provisions for up to 300-minute ETOPS, corresponding to a maximum diversion distance of 2,000 nautical miles at one-engine-inoperative speed under standard atmospheric conditions. Later this year, once the type accumulates additional in-service experience, Airbus expects the FAA to grant a further provision for 370-minute ETOPS, extending maximum diversion distance up to 2,500 nautical miles.  

According to Airbus, the 300-minute ETOPS 300 option will, in particular, facilitate more efficient transoceanic routes across the North and Mid-Pacific, such as from Southeast Asia and Australasia to the U.S. Meanwhile, it will allow operators flying on existing 180-minute ETOPS routes to use straighter, more fuel efficient flight paths while allowing access to more en-route diversion airports if needed.

Introduced by International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) in the mid-1980s, ETOPS certification allowed commercial operations with twin-engine aircraft on routes previously flown by aircraft with more than two engines. The rules, now named EDTO (Extended Diversion Time Operations) by ICAO, have undergone progressive revisions to allow operations beyond 180-minutes diversion time. In 2009, the Airbus A330 became the first airliner to gain a beyond 180-minute ETOPS, when it gained a 240-minute ETOPS certification from EASA. Airbus twins have now accumulated more than 17 million ETOPS flight hours, out of which A330 models have accumulated more than 13 million.