Stanislas Brun, chief cargo officer at Etihad Airways, and Ian Smith, chief project engineer of Trent XWB at Rolls-Royce, will join Cargo Facts EMEA for the panel discussion “Type Talk – A350Fs and key Trent XWB Developments,” a session presented by Airbus, on Wednesday, April 29, at 14:30 (GMT+2).

Crawford Hamilton, head of freighter marketing at Airbus, will moderate this panel discussion.

The eighth annual Cargo Facts EMEA event takes place April 28-30 at the Marriott Hotel Grand Place in Brussels, where key market influencers will assemble to share their outlook on the latest developments and market trends in Europe, the Middle East and Africa.

View the Cargo Facts EMEA 2026 agenda.

Hamilton became head of freighter marketing for Airbus in January 2020. He began his career at Airbus in 1995 and helped develop the A330-200 production freighter and A330neo.

Airbus started installing the large cargo door onto the prototype A350F at its final assembly line in Toulouse (TLS) this month. The manufacturer began ground tests on one (700) of the two prototypes in March after that aircraft rolled out of a key station at TLS in November 2025.

Brun was appointed chief cargo officer at Etihad in April 2025. He brings more than twenty-five years of management experience in global airfreight operations, including senior vice president of global airfreight at Geodis.

Etihad will modernize its fleet with A350Fs as part of its plans to reduce carbon emissions by 50% by 2035. The airline has ten on order.

Smith became the chief project engineer for the Trent XWB program at Rolls-Royce in May 2022. He has worked for the engine manufacturer for more than eighteen years and has more than fifteen years of gas turbine engineering experience.

Rolls-Royce’s Trent XWB-97 powerplant will support the A350F. The engine, which has a 97,000-pound thrust capability, can also operate on a 50% blend of sustainable aviation fuel.

The engine maker is seeing strong demand for its Trent 700 engines as more A330P2Fs gain market share with carriers such as Amazon, DHL, and Hungary Airlines.

Hamilton and the two panelists will frame their discussion around these topics:

• An update on A350F product features and production status;
• Key service dynamics related to the Trent XWB; and
• A350 customer feedback and insights.

Cargo Facts EMEA 2026 will take place April 28-30 in Brussels at the Marriott Hotel Grand Place. For more information and to register, visit CargoFactsEvents.com.