Nearly 16 years after the world's largest airliner first flew, the legend is coming to an end. On March 17, Airbus' last A380 completed its first flight and will be delivered to Emirates after further assembly in Germany.
legend
Known as the "Big Mac in the Sky", the Airbus A380 passenger aircraft was unveiled in 2005 to amaze the world: a four-engine double-decker airliner that can carry more than 500 passengers and a wealth of recreational facilities... All of this has made the A380 the brightest star on the sky.
In 2019, Airbus announced that the A380 would be discontinued in 2021. At noon on March 17, two years after Airbus announced the aircraft's discontinuation, the last preliminarily assembled A380 took off from the final assembly plant in Toulouse, France, for further assembly at Finkenwerd Airport in Germany, where delivery to Emirates next year is expected. On the same day, the "Big White" went around the field at a low altitude and swung its wings in greeting.
The world's largest airliner is a marvel of the aviation industry and a model of multinational collaboration, with nearly 4 million components, 1,500 companies and 30 countries in production and assembly, and costing about $25 billion to develop.
The A380 made its maiden flight in 2005 and was delivered to Singapore Airlines in 2007 to begin commercial flights. As soon as it came out, the A380's huge form factor and advanced performance attracted the world's attention. With its spaciousness, better ventilation and many entertainment facilities, the A380 was once regarded as the "family star" of Airbus and the product that Airbus used to compete with its competitor, the American Boeing 747.
Large aircraft like the A380 were also once seen as the future of air travel, which was also the background of its birth. At the turn of the century, Airbus once believed that "hub-to-hub" intercontinental aviation would be the development trend of the aviation industry, and the A380 was a promising future. At the same time, airlines based at large hub airports have become major buyers of the A380, including Emirates and Singapore Airlines.
Curtain call
Although the scenery was once unlimited, with the change of time and the change of the situation, the A380 gradually declined after more than ten years of soaring.
In February 2019, Airbus announced that it would discontinue the A380 after all order deliveries were completed in 2021. "It was a painful decision," Airbus CEO Tom Enders said at the time, "and we put a lot of effort, a lot of resources and sweat into this aircraft." ”
Many people believe that the most direct reason for the suspension of the A380 production is the decision of the big buyer Emirates to cut the order volume of the aircraft that year. But in reality, this was only the "last straw that crushed the camel", and the fate of the A380 was laid from the beginning.
Although this "sky hotel" with its own sense of luxury and comfort is quite popular with passengers, its huge size and high operating costs have caused headaches for operators, and some people call it the "great white elephant in the sky".
Due to factors such as cost and airport difficulties in adapting to its take-off and landing, aviation companies are generally cautious about this super large passenger aircraft, preferring a new generation of smaller aircraft, such as Boeing 787, 777, Airbus A350 and so on. Unfortunately, the advantages of the A380 turned out to be disadvantages.
It also reflects an error in Airbus's market expectations when designing and building the A380, overestimating the aviation industry's appetite for very large passenger aircraft. The reality is that passengers are reluctant to move back and forth between hubs and prefer to opt for "point-to-point" direct flights. The higher the empty seat rate of large aircraft, the thinner the profit, or even the loss.
An aviation industry insider once said: "This is a model that gives airline finance officers a headache, and the risk of not selling so many seats is too high." ”
In addition, factors such as rising fuel prices and the onset of the 2008 financial crisis have exacerbated the A380's woes. As the economies of various countries fell into recession and the number of intercontinental passengers fell sharply, the expensive A380 gradually became a "chicken rib".
At the same time, Airbus has also struggled to maintain the operation of the A380. According to reports, the A380 has repeatedly exposed cracks in the wings, and the average inspection and repair cost per passenger aircraft is as high as 1 million euros, and Airbus has spent hundreds of millions of euros on this purpose. Under multiple blows, Airbus is also constantly reducing the production of A380.
Last year, a sudden outbreak of covid-19 dealt a heavy blow to the global aviation industry, further accelerating the "demise" of this aircraft, with Air France-KLM group and Lufthansa announcing the early retirement of the A380.
Some commentators said that when Airbus decided to spend tens of billions of dollars on the A380 project, it was betting on demand expectations. Airbus predicted at the time that the future of the global aviation industry would belong to this behemoth, especially in the fast-growing Markets of Asia and the Middle East.
future
It can be said that the A380 has achieved Airbus's ambition to build large aircraft, but due to Airbus's misjudgment of the market and other reasons, the A380 has to say goodbye to the blue sky in the future. Some commentators said that the end of the A380 era marked the end of Airbus' dream of dominating the sky with the world's largest airliner. There are also views that Airbus' extensive technology accumulation in the R&D and manufacturing process of the A380 will help promote its further participation in the industry competition.
In addition, although the process of discontinuing the A380 is gradually advancing, in the next few years, "big white" may still appear in people's sights. Airbus said that despite the suspension of production, the aircraft sold and pending deliveries will continue to enter service for years to come.
Emirates President Tim Clark reportedly confirmed at a meeting that the company plans to keep the A380 fleet (currently about 120) flying until the mid-2030s.
There are also reports that British Airways is currently grounded for the A380 due to the impact of the epidemic, but British Airways is optimistic about the return of the aircraft. British Airways CEO Sean Doyle recently said the A380 "has performed well in many larger markets" and that "the A380 is currently grounded, but it is in our future rebuild plans." ”
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Column Editor-in-Chief: Yang Liqun Text Editor: Yang Liqun Title Image Source: IC photo Image Editor: Shao Jing
Source: Author: Lu Yifei