Production ends after fifteen years. Emirates will be the last customer.
Airbus is finishing production of the largest passenger aircraft in the world. The Airbus A380 took off in Toulouse today for its first test flight, which will be the last piece produced in the relatively short production history of the “superjumba”.
The aircraft with serial number MSN272 flew from Toulouse to Hamburg after ground tests, where the interior will be assembled, the aircraft must still receive the final Emirates paint.
The final @Airbus A380 produced (MSN 272 destined for Emirates) has just taken to the skies for the first time. The aircraft will conduct tests on its way to Hamburg for finish work. https://t.co/Hm5uPskDWE pic.twitter.com/7yfw03aR3s
— Flightradar24 (@flightradar24) March 17, 2021
The aircraft is equipped with four Rolls-Royce Trent 972 engines. Emirates have ordered a total of 123 A380s, some of the carrier’s oldest aircraft have currently been scrapped. The plane will have a new Premium Economy class by the carrier introduced at the end of last year. Emirates is the largest customer of this type.
Most A380 operators have shut them down for a long time due to a drop in demand. Even before the coronavirus crisis, airlines began to withdraw from them and gradually switched to more modern and economical aircraft of the A350 or Boeing 787 type.
Production of the A380 ends 15 years after the takeoff of the first aircraft. So far, Airbus has delivered 234 A380 aircraft to customers. Airbus originally expected production much longer, but the airlines lost interest in the aircraft.
The last # A380 said goodbye to his hometown by making a superb wing wave above its factory. ❤️ pic.twitter.com/omT3Nj6xG3
— Aviation Toulouse (@Frenchpainter) March 17, 2021
The news comes at a time when airlines are coming up with various plans for the future of these machines. Lufthansa, for example, is sending another long-term shutdown machine to Spain, and Etihad Airways does not offer much hope for the return of these aircraft. The head of British Airways, on the other hand, announced that he expects the aircraft to return to the fleet.
Dear #planespotter: Tomorrow, our “Mike-Delta”, one of our A380s, takes off @Airport_FRA to Teruel into deep storage. We plan to use the parking space for other aircraft that we expect to reactivate sooner. Follow LH9922 @flightradar24, STD: 08.15 UTC Thursday morning. ????✈️ pic.twitter.com/MlKhYb4Ck1
– Lufthansa News (@lufthansaNews) March 17, 2021
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