A380 troubles, the latest news...

[J]

Emirates Phases Out Its First Airbus A380, Plans to Retire More

Excerpt:
Emirates Airbus A380 A6-EDB, which joined the Emirates fleet on Oct. 24, 2008, six months after its first test flight, has been retired from the airline’s fleet. The aircraft, which hasn’t performed a revenue flight in four months, was spotted in an all-white livery at Dubai International Airport.

A6-EDB made its last commercial flight on Feb. 23 from Muscat International Airport in Muscat, Oman, to Dubai before being stored at Dubai World Central International Airport on Feb. 28. The ill-fated superjumbo was brought back to Dubai International Airport after a month-long recess on March 25 and bid adieu to the skies after making its last flight over Dubai on May 28. It is one of the aircraft of the model wholly owned by Emirates, unlike others operated on long-term financial lease agreements with outside lessors
* * *
Although Emirates is said to be considering to retire most of its A380 fleet because of impacts of the current industrial turmoil, it would be inaccurate to relate the removal of A6-EDB from the fleet to the pandemic. That is because Emirates, the world’s largest operator of A380, planned the retirement of a few of its double-deckers long before the current situation. The airline will also likely remove two of its aging A380s, registered as A6-EDA and A6-EDC, that are stored at Dubai International Airport.

“You’ll start seeing A380s coming out of our fleet for various reasons, and we’ve always said this,” said Emirates Airline President Tim Clark last year. “These are being dealt with on a tail-by-tail, month-by-month basis under a retirement [schedule] that is well planned already.”

“We are in the process of [starting A380 retirements],” he said at the time. “Two have been deactivated. They are under retirement because we’ve got a major overhaul coming up and it’s best to take the old aircraft out – they’re all written down – and take the gear off them rather than buy a $25 million main landing gear. I need two, possibly three, to meet that [overhaul] requirement.”

https://airlinegeeks.com/2020/06/14/emi ... tire-more/

[Verbal]

Airbus just trucked its final A380 fuselage through a small French village as the world's largest airliner is killed off
Business Insider 06/22/2020
Author: Thomas Pallini

Evenings in the French village of Levignac are about to become quieter as Airbus nears the end of an era for its largest passenger jet.

The normally quiet village in Southern France sits just outside of Toulouse, the manufacturing hub of the aerospace giant. Levignac doesn't build airplanes or contribute greatly to Airbus' supply chain but it's played an important role in the development of the Airbus A380.

For the past 16 years, Levignac has been one of the last towns on the journey for A380 parts en route to the final assembly line where parts from across Europe are pieced together to form the finished product.

After arriving at the French Atlantic coast, the wings and fuselage for each aircraft are transported by barge inland and then over the road on trucks from Langon to Toulouse, bypassing most villages but passing directly through Levignac. The first convoy passed through Levignac in 2004 and the practice continued for 16 years before the last convoy completed its mission on Wednesday.

Airbus is shuttering its Airbus A380 product line following lackluster sales. Less than 300 aircraft were sold and with the arrival of next-generation aircraft, airlines are finding it more profitable to operate more flights with smaller aircraft than fewer flights with larger aircraft.

The final convoy carried parts destined to become an Airbus A380 for Emirates, the largest operator of the world's largest passenger plane.

[3WE]

What is an A380?

(Ok, I know what it is, but we[italics?] are reaching that point.)

[elaw]

It's two A190's glued together, one on top of the other.

[ocelot]

Evidently they should have done side-by-side, like the F-82.

[J]

Picture Tour Of Hi Fly A380 in Cargo Configuration

This is the former Singapore plane that was purchased by Hi Fly, a Portuguese wet lease company. It has operated a number of passenger flights and now has had many coach class seats removed for additional cargo space.
That certainly represents a lot of cubic capacity but will also require a lot of manual handling. Imagine loading all that freight via standard passenger doors on both decks - or do they use the stairway for upstairs? Most of the capacity is on the main deck with overhead bins being used as well. None of the pictures or video show tie down features for the floor loads in the modified sections.

https://samchui.com/2020/07/08/picture- ... wXEEeJYb0A

[Not_Karl]

Picture Tour Of Hi Fly A380 in Cargo Configuration

Interesting, thanks!

[J]

Here is a 3-minute video of the Hi Fly conversion dated July 29. While much of it is not new information, you can catch a quick view of packages secured to the floor at the 1-minute mark and some more loading details around 2 minutes.
Based on the amount of labor needed to load boxes through the passenger doors and, in some cases, carry them around the first and business class seats that were not removed, this seems like a clever way to get at least a few revenue flights while there is so little demand for passenger traffic.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8iD88SkE3Rg

[J]

Hi Fly A380 Menaces Portuguese Holidaymakers
Includes rather anti-climatic 1-minute video.

Hi Fly’s Airbus A380 Causes Panic & Joy After Flying Just 230m Above Coastline
Earlier this week, Hi Fly caused panic and joy as it flew over holidaymakers enjoying the beach. The Portuguese charter airline said the performance was planned and intended to raise awareness as well as give planespotters a treat.

The A380, registered as 9H-MIP, flew just 230 meters above the Algarve coastline in a stunt that impressed many keen aviation enthusiasts. The airline’s vice president Carlos Mirpuri reportedly piloted the aircraft in a planned event.

9H-MIP was completing a functional flight check, which lasted just under an hour. It left Beja International Airport at 14:44 local time (UTC+1) and flew over Faro and Vilamoura. Before it left from Beja Airport, it had published an alert on its Twitter account urging lucky enthusiasts to look out for the aircraft as it passed over the Algarve.

https://simpleflying.com/hi-flys-airbus ... coastline/

[J]

Posted on 9/11 14 more A380's supposedly being retired.


Lufthansa to Retire All A380 and B747-400 Aircraft
( Article has photos of planes in storage.)

Lufthansa is planning to retire all of their Airbus A380s, the bulk of their smaller A340s and all of their older Boeing 747-400s. The move would be one of the largest fleet shake-ups of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The unexpected claims stem from a number of unnamed internal sources, who, according to Bloomberg, also believe that there will be a cull of narrow-body planes that feed longer routes.

Although Lufthansa has already confirmed that they will axe 100 aircraft from their fleet, these new fleet cuts would far surpass that number. In turn, the sources have disclosed that Lufthansa will also lay-off many more staff than the 22,000 initially announced.

Lufthansa may keep a handful of younger A340-600s, thus preserving capacity for busier routes, according to the Bloomberg sources. At this stage, no indication has been given that the airline will retire their newer Boeing 747-8i aircraft.

Lufthansa reported a $1.78 billion loss from January to June, marking some of the most abysmal results the airline has seen. The German Government has taken a 20% stake, injecting €9 billion ($11 billion) in survival lifelines.

Lufthansa declined our request for comment.

https://samchui.com/2020/09/11/lufthans ... 1ue6eJYZYs

[Not_Karl]

Lufthansa to Retire All (...) B747-400 Aircraft

I predict some repercussions over there...

[3WE]

Lufthansa to Retire All (...) B747-400 Aircraft

I predict some repercussions over there...

Will someone did died from depression?

[Gabriel]

Lufthansa to Retire All (...) B747-400 Aircraft

I predict some repercussions over there...

Will someone did died from depression?

I wonder how long will the post be... and how understandable.

[J]

Superjumbo problems - What’s an A380 worth?

From the Economist: The world’s biggest passenger aeroplane is going cheap

Aug 13th 2020
HOW MUCH is an airliner worth if it is languishing on the tarmac, and may never fly passengers again? In the age of covid-19 that is the fate of many double-decker A380 superjumbos built by Airbus, Europe’s aerospace giant. Once seen by airlines as the future of commercial aviation, many are being retired early as covid-19 has cast a pall on the future of globe-trotting. Those still in service could be yours for a few million dollars.

The A380 was in trouble before the pandemic. Delays meant that by the time it at last flew it had to compete with smaller, more efficient jets. Only 14 airlines ever ordered the 500-plus seater, with Emirates, based in Dubai, operating nearly half the 242 planes delivered. After Emirates cancelled orders for 39 in February 2019, Airbus announced it was winding down production of the plane.

All aircraft have lost value as a result of covid-19. But the fall has been unusually steep for A380s. The model’s main attraction for airlines was to relieve congested runways at global hub airports. Now these are empty. Fewer than one in ten working A380s are plying the skies, according to Flightradar24, which tracks air traffic. Smaller craft are faring somewhat better.

The aviation industry may not recover until 2024, according to the International Air Transport Association, a trade group. That is a long time to maintain aeroplanes, so some airlines have thrown in the towel. Air France has announced its nine A380s will never fly again, and booked a €500m ($588m) write-down in the value of its fleet. Germany’s Lufthansa has cut its 14-strong squadron by six. Singapore Airlines, the second-biggest operator with 19 planes, plans an ominous-sounding “review”.

Valuations of A380s have tumbled accordingly. The oldest models have been flying for 12 years or so. At that age, aircraft have typically lost half their value. Given each costs $250m-300m to buy when kitted out, airline accountants might have hoped for $125m. But even before covid-19 appraisers suggested between $75m and $100m. Now some A380s are fetching half what they used to be worth, says Usman Ahmed of Aircore Aviation, a consultancy. The slump is borne out by the accounts of investment funds that own planes and lease them to airlines. A fund called Doric Nimrod Air One recently cut the accounting value of its sole asset, an A380 leased to Emirates, by 51% in dollar terms.

The share prices of listed A380-owning funds suggests the residual values of the planes once the leases expire are between $10m and $15m, says Matthew Hose of Jefferies, an investment bank. Given regular maintenance overhauls of each of the A380’s four engines can cost $6m, existing motors in decent nick are, in principle, worth at least that much. Add the landing gear, also in principle reusable, and that would make the airframe itself worthless. It also signals that even the spares—which in modern planemaking are always aircraft-specific and useless for other models—may not have much value.

Struggling operators sometimes convert unwanted passenger jets into cargo planes. But Airbus never launched a freight version of the A380, so the conversion would be tricky. No scheduled carrier that flies the aircraft already is keen on more, even at knock-down prices. The first A380 to fly, which came into service in 2007, has already been sent to the scrapheap. More are headed that way.

https://www.economist.com/business/2020 ... a380-worth

[Verbal]

Breaking: The Final Airbus A380 Has Been Assembled

by Tom Boon
September 23, 2020

The final Airbus A380 fuselage has been assembled. The assembly marks the end of an era as the A380 program draws to a close just 15 years after the aircraft’s first flight.

It shouldn’t come as a surprise that the Airbus A380 assembly line is slowly drawing to a close. After all, we’ve known about the end of the A380 program for a year and a half now, with some A380s already having been retired.

In February, Simple Flying reported that the final A380 fuselage had made the journey to Toulouse. Well, now the fuselage has finished its initial construction. This means that Airbus’ manufacturing station 40 is now out of work. There’s still a bit of work to complete this aircraft, as many parts still need to be installed.

Nine deliveries outstanding

The final Airbus to be assembled carries the manufacturer’s serial number 272. It is one of nine outstanding deliveries of the A380. Eight aircraft are due to go to Emirates, the largest A380 carrier, while the additional A380 is due to be delivered to Japanese carrier ANA. For the time being, it seems as though both airlines are delaying future A380 deliveries given the current aviation situation.

The end of an era

The initial assembly of the final Airbus A380 marks the end of an era for the Giant of the Skies. Sadly, it will be a short-lived era. The Airbus A380 has quickly fallen out of favor with airlines worldwide, something that the current situation hasn’t helped. Airlines are favoring more fuel-efficient twin-engine aircraft.

The A380’s colossal size is its main selling point. However, it seems as though this may also be the aircraft’s downfall. There are very few niche routes that sustain enough traffic to make the A380 viable, such as London to Dubai and London to Los Angeles. However, given the current wall of travel restrictions, even the latter can’t currently support an A380.

For the time being, the Airbus A380 as a family remains firmly grounded. Only a handful of aircraft from Emirates and China Southern are currently flying. However, the plane itself will still be around for many years to come. Airlines likely won’t be keen to scrap brand new aircraft. As such, those delivered within the past year probably still have some usage yet. It’s more a question of when they will return to the sky, rather than if. It is unclear when this final A380 will be delivered.

Simple Flying has contacted Airbus for comment regarding this story.

https://simpleflying.com/final-airbus-a380-assembled/

[elaw]

End of an era or end of an error?

[J]

Emirates retires first Airbus A380

Emirates has, for the first time ever, retired an Airbus A380. The aircraft was flown into storage on Tuesday.

A6-EDB was the second A380 delivered to the airline. Emirates received the aircraft back in October 2008. Plans for its retirement were reportedly made before the ongoing Coronavirus pandemic put airlines around the world in a crisis.

On Tuesday, Emirates transferred the A380 with serial number 013 from Dubai to Tarbes-Lourdes (IATA: LDE) in France. The latter airport is home to aircraft recycling company Tarmac Aerosave, which is also dismantling former Airbus A380 aircraft of Singapore Airlines.

According to Planespotters.net, A6-EDB was already withdrawn from use and put into temporary storage at Dubai Airport in late-February. Just one month later, the airline temporarily halted scheduled passenger flights as a measure of the local government to slow the spread of Covid-19.

As of right now, Emirates’ fleet includes 114 Airbus A380. Eight more are built but still due to be delivered. Currently, most aircraft are in temporary storage amid significantly lower passenger numbers due to the pandemic.

https://www.ifn.news/posts/emirates-ret ... rbus-a380/

[J]

Poor A380 just can't catch a break.

Breaking: Hi Fly Set To Retire Its Only Airbus A380
Portuguese wet lease carrier Hi Fly is set to retire its only Airbus A380 aircraft later this year. The aircraft is unique in that it is the only A380 to have been used in a second-hand capacity, rather than being scrapped. The retirement will come as a blow to the already non-existent second-hand A380 market.

While the Airbus A380 is a great aircraft, there is no doubt that it was released at the wrong time. The giant plane only ever got 251 firm orders during the entirety of its program. Meanwhile, some airlines are retiring models that are less than ten years old.

Hi Fly today revealed that its sole Airbus A380, 9H-MIP, will be retired at the end of its three year lease period. According to Planespotters.net, the aircraft was delivered to Hi Fly in July 2018. However, it was withdrawn from use by Singapore Airlines on November 6th, 2017.
* * *
“Hi Fly belongs to the very exclusive club of only 15 airlines to ever operate the A380, the largest and most advanced aircraft of all times. This aircraft was a testimony to how far human being can go in developing something so extraordinary.”

About 9H-MIP
9H-MIP was just the sixth Airbus A380 to be built by Airbus. The aircraft took its first flight in November 2006, before Singapore Airlines took delivery of the aircraft in March 2008. As such, the aircraft is now 14 years old.

Hi Fly had shown an interest in the aircraft’s sister, 9V-SKB, but according to Plaenspotters.net, this order was never taken up. The reality now seems that aircraft being retired will not find a second home before being scrapped.

https://simpleflying.com/hi-fly-airbus-a380-retirement/

[Not_Karl]

[Gabriel]

For some reason, the A380 is an airplane I will not miss, although I would have liked having flown in one at least once (I know they will still be around plenty of time but it is unlikely that she and I will cross paths).

[J]

How Some Qantas A380 Pilots Became Bus Drivers
Includes Video Interview

Excerpt:
The airline has put most of its long haul aircraft in storage in California:

All A380s have been stored, with no plans to fly them in the next few years
Most 787s have been stored; while these are likely to be reactivated before A380s, it’ll be at least a year before any more of these planes are flying again
As a result, Qantas has also furloughed a majority of its pilots, so it’s anyone’s guess if & when they’ll be recalled.

13 Qantas pilots have become bus drivers With so many Qantas pilots not currently having work, at least 13 Qantas pilots have transitioned from Airbuses to… well, regular buses. Australian news program “The Project” has a fascinating interview with two Qantas pilots, talking about their journeys.

Combined the two pilots have spent 62 years flying jets:

One was a Qantas A380 captain who delivered the first ever A380 12 years ago, which was a highlight of his career
One was a Qantas A380 first officer who flew the last A380 flight back from London; he talks about how he felt emotional, knowing it might be the last time he flies the plane
Both of the pilots flew a Qantas A380 into the Mojave Desert several months ago for long term storage, noting how surreal and emotional it was.

“I think going to the Mojave was probably one of the most difficult things, you know, taking that first aircraft that I delivered to the desert. And it’ll probably stay there, won’t come back, we all cried. You know, there’s 10 A380s parked in Victorville, parked in the dirt, the tumbling tumbleweeds being blown by the wind. Then you pan away from our 10 aircraft, and there’s 700 or 800 airplanes.”

And that brings us to the present day — both of the pilots are now bus drivers. They talk about how they wanted a purpose and were otherwise at home, and this was an opportunity that was presented to them.

How does flying an Airbus compare to driving a bus? The pilots talk about how flying a plane takes concentration for short periods of time, and then they sometimes get breaks and can even watch a movie, while driving a bus takes concentration for long periods of time. One of the pilots even says that he hopes that when he formally retires from Qantas he can go back to driving buses.

Word spread between pilots about the opportunity, and that’s how they’ve gotten so many airline pilots onto buses now.

https://onemileatatime.com/qantas-pilots-bus-drivers/

[Not_Karl]

It looks like they're trying "greener" cheap composites...

Flower Power.jpg (221.69 KiB) Viewed 9876 times

[elaw]

A Chia A380... now I've seen it all.

[3WE]

A Chia A380... now I've seen it all.

That is going to require a lot of Nair!

[J]

As it said goodbye to its A380, Hi Fly drew a giant heart off the coast of Portugal before traveling to Toulouse.

https://www.flightradar24.com/blog/hi-f ... with-love/