Springbok | Airbus A350 family | 2011-present

With the A340s only growing older and more expensive to maintain, as well as their 4-engined nature putting them at a disadvantage compared to other similarly-sized aircraft, Springbok went looking for a replacement in the early 2010s. The A350 was the most logical option to consider, as it could help replace both the A340-600 and it would allow the company to upgauge higher-yielding A340-300 routes. As a result, in 2016, Springbok placed its largest-ever single aircraft order for 21 A350-900s, to be delivered from 2019.

Just months before the delivery of the first type, in December 2018, Spingbok decided to convert 5 of these orders to the A350-1000, and add 2 additional frames, for a total of 7 of the type, to be delivered between 2023 and 2025. The rationale behind this order was that, while the A350-900 could be a suitable A340-600 replacement in terms of total seat count, which on the A350 was about 30 seats less than the A340 (a useful fact considering several of its A340-600 routes would be more profitable with slightly lower-capacity rightsized aircraft) it couldn't match the quad in terms of the premium-heavy configuration. Withouth that element, Springbok could lose market share on flagship routes such as Johannesburg to London, Paris, Frankfurt and New York. Meanwhile the A350-1000 has nearly the same dimensions as the A340-600, allowing for a similar configuration in terms of the allocation of space to premium seats.

In June 2019 the first A350-900 was delivered to Springbok, arriving in Johannesburg on the 11th of the month. The following day it was revealed to company employees and press during a ceremony, which also served as the reveal of the new long-haul cabin products of the airline, including its first-ever Premium Economy seat. It was configured with 32 Business Class, 24 Premium Economy and 266 Economy seats, and operated its inaugural flight to Cape Town on the 17th, before entering regular service to Dubai in September.

ZS-FSA is the 4th A350 to be delivered to Springbok, and the first of 7 of the type to come without Premium Economy seats, instead flying with 32 Business and 312 Economy seats. It was contractually delivered on April 3rd, 2020, however is still stored in France. It is expected to be officially handed over to Springbok in mid-November, however it is unknown when it'll commence commercial flights.

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I was gonna post regional stuff, but since A350s are trending atm...