Korean Air switches 7 A350-1000 orders to the A350F
Korean Air's order book now includes six A350-900, 20 A350-1000, and seven A350F aircraft.
Korean Air has adjusted its Airbus A350 backlog, converting seven outstanding orders for the A350-1000 to the A350F, which is based on the A350-1000.
On October 31, 2025, Airbus announced that Korean Air had converted seven A350-1000 orders to the A350F, becoming the freighter’s newest customer. According to Benoît de Saint-Exupéry, the Executive Vice President of Sales at Airbus Commercial Aircraft, Korean Air’s decision to add the A350F to its fleet is “a very significant endorsement of the aircraft’s unique capabilities.”
“The A350F will bring Korean Air the most efficient solution in the large freighter segment.”
Korean Air finalized its orders for 27 A350-1000 and six A350-900 aircraft in April 2024. The airline had taken delivery of two A350-900s in December 2024, according to planespotters.net, with a remaining backlog of 31 A350 aircraft as of September 30.
Asiana Airlines, which is set to merge into a single airline with Korean Air, also has 15 A350-900s.
The two airlines’ cargo fleet should number 23 aircraft, all of which are currently with Korean Air. The carrier has four Boeing 747-400F, seven 747-8F, and 12 777F cargo aircraft. During their merger process, Asiana Airlines sold off its cargo business, which included 10 747-400F and one 767F aircraft, to Air Incheon, which later changed its branding to AirZeta, in order to clear regulatory hurdles, including in the European Union (EU).
During the planemaker’s Q3 2025 earnings call on October 29, Guillaume Faury, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Airbus, updated stakeholders that the planemaker has begun the assembly process of the first A350F. The type’s first flight is planned next year.
Rytis Beresnevicius
As of September 30, Airbus had secured orders for 65 A350Fs. Customers listed on the planemaker’s orders and deliveries filings included Air France, AviLease, Cathay Pacific, CMA CGM, Etihad Airways, Martinair, Silk Way West Airlines, Singapore Airlines, STARLUX Airlines, and Turkish Airlines, as well as an undisclosed airline, which ordered three A350Fs on January 8.
In addition to these, on October 28, Air China Cargo, the cargo subsidiary of Air China, disclosed that it had agreed to buy up to 10 A350Fs. The order, which includes six firm and four optional orders, has to be approved by the Chinese carrier’s shareholders during the company’s upcoming shareholders’ meeting on November 14.
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