Tag Archives: A380

Lufthansa retiring some A320s, A340s, A380’s and 747s

The majority of the global aircraft fleet is grounded at the moment and airlines do not expect demand to return to the pre coronavirus levels any time soon. As such, some airlines have begun longer-term planning of their fleets – in many cases accelerating the retirements of their older aircraft. American is retiring it’s Embraer 190s, 76 Boeing 737-800s, its …

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Air France orders upto 120 A220’s. Will retire the A380

Air France has announced that it has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Airbus for 60 A220-300 aircraft. The deal also includes an additional 30 options and 30 acquisition rights which could potentially see an order of 120 aircraft. The aircraft are planned to be delivered from September 2021 and will replace the airline’s existing A218 and A319 fleet …

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Airbus orders and deliveries – June 2019. Paris delivers an order boost.

Airbus closed the first half of 2019 by adding 145 orders to its order book in June. As expected the slew of orders from the Paris Air Show pushed the European manufacturers net orders for the year into the black, with a net positive of 88 aircraft. The Paris Air Show saw Airbus launch the A321XLR for which the manufacturer …

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Airbus orders and deliveries – April 2019. Orders continue to slow as deliveries rise.

European airframer Airbus logged only a single order for an ACJ320neo for an undisclosed customer. The order barely made a dent in the companies order deficit for the year which stands at negative 57 aircraft. However expect to see Airbus announce orders at the Paris airshow which starts in 10 days time. The company usually makes some large announcements during …

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Emirates and the impacts of the A380 phase-out

With the production of the Airbus A380 ending 2021, airline enthusiasts the world over are wondering if there will be a replacement aircraft that is as awe-inspiring. The end of the program is also interesting as it contradicts the fact that airports are increasingly constrained and indeed airlines will have to devise strategies to overcome this. Yet, the impacts are …

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Airbus orders and deliveries – March 2019. Sales and deliveries gain momentum.

European airframer Airbus has closed out the last month of the quarter with 58 orders. While the figures are much better than the first two months where the company only secured orders for four of it’s the smallest aircraft. Airbus will still close the quarter with a net order deficit of 58 aircraft. The manufacturer has also not yet accounted …

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Airbus to end A380 program after Emirates order reduction

European airframer has announced the end of its A380 program with the final delivery of the type in 2021. The decision comes after discussions with the aircraft’s biggest customer resulted in them cancelling its 39 orders for the A380 and replacing them with other Airbus twin-jets. Tom Enders, CEO, Airbus “As a result of this decision we have no substantial …

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Airbus orders and deliveries – January 2019

European airframer Airbus began the year with an order deficit. The airline recorded five cancellations for their smallest A220 aircraft and eight for the largest A380. The A380 cancellation reflected that of Qantas which had been previously announced. Airbus has not disclosed the customer for the cancellation of the A220. However Swiss carrier PrivatAir had ordered five of the then …

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Airbus A380 future uncertain as Emirates considers A350

European airframer Airbus has confirmed talks with Dubai based Emirates airlines over the carriers A380 orders, with reports that the carrier is considering switching its orders to the smaller A350. Emirates is the world’s largest operator of the A380, with 109 aircraft and 53 on order. The carrier extended a lifeline to the struggling program in February 2018 by placing …

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The Airbus 380: operations and outlook

Singapore Airlines A380-800 9V-SKD. Image copyright Devesh Agarwal

The Airbus 380, the world’s largest passenger aircraft, entered commercial service in 2007 with launch customer Singapore Airlines. With a maximum takeoff weight of 575 tonnes (almost eight times the weight of an Airbus A320) and average seating of 575 passengers (800+ in high density configurations) Airbus built the A380 on the premise of slot-constrained airports needing a ultra-high capacity …

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Boeing and Airbus set delivery records in 2018

Airbus and Boeing have both set delivery records in 2018 with 800 and 806 aircraft delivered by the European and American airframers respectively. Boeing Boeing delivered a total of 806 commercial aircraft in 2018 compared to 763 in 2017. The deliveries included:580 737 family (529 in 2017)6 747 family (14 in 2017)27 767 family -10 aircraft were delivered to Boeing’s …

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Pictures: First ANA A380 in special Sea Turtle livery

The first Airbus A380 destined for Japanese carrier All Nippon Airways (ANA) has been rolled out of the paint shop at the manufacturer’s plant in Hamburg, Germany. The aircraft is painted in a special Hawaiian Green Sea Turtle livery. The airline has three of the super jumbos on order – each of which will be painted in a different colour …

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Video: Emirates, Etihad, Air Arabia and Fly Dubai fly in formation

The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has four airlines, the two best known are Emirates and Etihad from the emirates of Dubai and Abu Dhabi respectively. Fly Dubai is a low-cost carrier based in Dubai and Air Arabia is based in Sharjah, another of the seven emirates. The UAE was celebrating its 47th national day over the weekend. This year has …

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The Emirates order which saved the A380 could fall through

Earlier this year Emirates signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Airbus for 36 Airbus A380s – 20 firm order with 16 options. The deal which was worth $16 billion (before discounts) was widely seen as an extension of life for the A380 program. It’s safe to say Emirates loves it’s A380s. With 105 aircraft in it’s fleet and another …

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Hi Fly takes delivery of it’s first A380

Hi-Fly Airbus A380 9H-MIP. Hi-Fly Image.

Portuguese leasing company, Hi Fly has taken delivery of it’s first Airbus A380. The delivery marks the first time an A380 has been picked up on the second hand market. It makes the airline the world’s 14th and Europe’s fourth A380 operator. The airline which specializes in widebody aircraft wet leasing to other airlines and governments had announced that it …

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Analysis: What drove the Emirates to buy more Airbus A380?

Emirates Airbus A380 A6-EOV approaches Singapore Changi Airport. Copyrighted picture. Do not re-use.

In the weeks leading upto the Emirates A380 order there was much speculation on the future of the A380 program and if this glorious aircraft would continue to be produced. As the largest operator of the fleet type Emirates was central to the debate. Things came to a pass when at the Dubai Airshow Emirates ordered 40 Boeing 787-10 Dreamliners …

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Airbus A380 rescue. Emirates orders 36 additional superjumbos for $16B

Emirates_A380-800 A6-EDF arrives at London.

The struggling Airbus A380 superjumbo program was just handed a lifeline by its largest operator, Dubai-based Emirates Airline. The Gulf behemoth has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to acquire up to 36 additional A380 aircraft. The firm commitment is for 20 A380s with options for an 16. Deliveries are scheduled to start in 2020. From the first A380 delivery …

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Photos: New Singapore Airlines A380. Apartment Suites and better Business.

Singapore Airlines A380-800 9V-SKD. Image copyright Devesh Agarwal

Singapore Airlines has finally unveiled its much awaited new cabin for its Airbus A380 flagship fleet. The cabins in all four classes of service, Suites, Business, Premium Economy and Economy are focussed around the theme of “Space made personal, experience the difference”. The new cabins feature intimate and bespoke elements while increasing space and privacy. The new configuration offers 471 …

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Inflight review: Etihad Airways A380: Business Studio: London to Abu Dhabi

The center seats. The forward facing rows are great for couples.

This is the first in a three part article of my trip from London to Bangalore. After exiting the lounge, I walked straight up to the gate which is right opposite the lounge entrance and immediately reached an agent, had my boarding card scanned and let through to the aerobridge. The experience of transiting the lounge to the aircraft was …

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Airbus unveils A380plus, an enhanced version of the superjumbo

New split winglets proposed on the A380plus. Airbus image.

European airframer Airbus unveiled a development study for an enhanced version of the A380 superjumbo, the “A380plus”. The study is a bid by the company to re-engergise sales of the world’s largest passenger aircraft that have been stagnant for over a year. It also appears to be an effort to bridge the requests of the largest A380 customer, Emirates airline, …

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