Friday morning, passengers flying between Spain and Costa Rica boarded one of the industry’s most modern airplanes.
Spanish flag-carrier Iberia began operating an Airbus A350-900 on its San José-Madrid route. It will use the plane seasonally through March, according to Costa Rica’s Tourism Board (ICT).
Iberia is the first airline to operate the ultra-long-haul Airbus with scheduled service to Costa Rica.
Track the incoming flight on FlightAware here. As of press time, the estimated arrival time in Alajuela is 3:54 p.m.
According to the airline, the A350 “is a latest-generation aircraft equipped with state-of-the-art technology and designed to save fuel, therefore reducing the environmental impact.”
Airbus says the A350 family has a fuselage built with carbon-fiber reinforced plastic, “which supports lower fuel burn, easier maintenance and increased resistance to corrosion.”
The widebody plane “also offers multiple benefits for passengers, such as wider aisles, larger overhead bins, an air-conditioning system that enhances on-board comfort by providing fresher air, [and] panoramic windows,” Iberia says.
Iberia has previously operated Airbus A330 and A340-series aircraft on its routes to Costa Rica.
