The Airbus A380 made its first industrial flight in 2007. When it debuted, it overtook the long-reigning Boeing 747 because the world’s biggest passenger plane. It has 4 engines and is a full double-decker that may carry greater than 800 people depending on an airline’s cabin layout.
The plane’s large variety of seats was seen as key in helping to scale back the overcrowding of air traffic at several big airports, equivalent to London’s Heathrow Airport, Latest York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport and Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport.
But orders for four-engine aircraft began to say no alongside the arrival of more fuel-friendly planes equivalent to Airbus’ own A350 and Boeing’s 787 Dreamliner.
“What we have generally heard from airlines is that when you’ll be able to fill an A380, the unit costs, as in the associated fee per seat, are very attractive,” said Mike Stengel of AeroDynamic Advisory. “But after all, you realize, consistently filling 550 seats is much harder than consistently filling a 350-seat wide-body.”
The Europe-based Airbus announced an end to its A380 superjumbo program just 12 years after it first took to the skies.
In the course of the Covid-19 pandemic, the A380 was considered one of the fleets most heavily affected by the near-halt to international long-haul travel, on account of its size and operating cost. Many said it was the tip for the superjumbos, however the A380 has been making a comeback, with several airlines pulling planes out of retirement.
Airbus says it expects the A380 to be flying for the following 20 years, and it remains to be being operated by 10 airlines, including Emirates, Lufthansa, Etihad Airways and British Airways.
CNBC explores how the A380 became the largest passenger plane on this planet and what the long run looks like for the huge jet. Watch the video to learn more.
