A380 - Production to Halt in 2021

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6614 posts

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#2180933 15-Feb-2019 13:32

networkn:

Coil:

The 747 will be kept on as a BBJ as well. (Boeing Business Jet)

The Queen of the Skies lives on.

I thought the the discussion was around commercial passenger craft.

I would have thought the A380 would have had a reasonable life as a cargo plane, and I had thought it was more economical to run than a 747 to boot.

Yeah I sort of blurred the lines there. The model of a big jumbo jet going to a central airport is slowly dwindling away for the more direct options. This is where the 787 and A350 come into play and why the 747 is still not being refreshed as a passenger liner. Still not much would stop a carrier from retrofitting a freighter to passenger if the need was there.

But, The 747 which is my all time favorite lives on which is my point.
I also absolutely adore these little quirky beasts, the Q400 is my favorite plane to fly in, love how they handle in take offs with cross wind and turbulence. Takes a man to fly these.

Fred99

13684 posts

Uber Geek

#2180934 15-Feb-2019 13:34

PolicyGuy:

sbiddle:

[snip]

What I was saying is that Emirates no longer fly the A380 on Trans Tasman routes, and haven't done for a couple of years now.

Yes they fly them here rather than paying parking costs in Australia for the day - this is an strategy adopted by numerous airlines.

My cousin is an Emirates A380 First Officer, and he flew into Sydney on Saturday, had a 24-hour slip there, where he joined a family birthday celebration, and flew to Christchurch on Monday. On Wednesday he flew back to Sydney, and on Friday back to Dubai.
Other times he has done rotations through Auckland
So Emirates are definitely still flying the A380 Trans Tasman

There's a daily Emirates A380 flight Syd/Chch and return. Chch airport widened the taxiway outside the main terminal to let it past with sufficient clearance (before they did that, the 380 would have to taxi back down the runway. You can see it on google earth timeline.

Not sure about avoiding airport parking fees. Why not just depart from Sydney directly back to Dubai? (the flight arrives in Syd from Dubai at 7:00am to Chch leaves Sydney mid-morning for Chch it's not "overnighting").

The A320s and 737s flying TT, it makes good sense to overnight them in NZ regardless of parking cost comparisons - so they can get them back in the air ASAP with early flights across the Tasman. I'd wanted to fly Emirates a few times to Sydney and return as it flies in gentleman's hours, most of the rest of the flights are red-eye specials - or arrive back at midnight - if you're lucky.

amiga500

1484 posts

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#2180946 15-Feb-2019 14:00

The Youtube Channel D J Aviation has some very good videos on the A380 end of production issue. BTW it was indeed strange to see how the A380 would depart from its gate, go along the taxiway, then turn onto the runway, then back again onto the taxiway!

amiga500

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#2180949 15-Feb-2019 14:07

networkn:

Handle9:

It's not surprising but unfortunate. It was a great solution for a problem which didn't exist anymore.

It's still my favourite plane while in the air - it's so much quieter than anything else.

I didn't find it quieter than the 787, however I do like how big it is so turbulence seems less sharp.

I would very much like to take an A350 at some stage, I hear they are amazing. I am not sure any route I am flying any time soon has them.

The turbulence felt by the passenger is damped down a lot in the A380 and in still air conditions they feel incredibly stable - it's like sitting in a comfortable chair at home - there is zero sensation of flying. I guess that is down to the computers smoothing things out.

nathan

5695 posts

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#2181164 16-Feb-2019 08:09

jarledb:

Really disappointed as well. Both at Airbus and Emirates.

My favourite way to get to Norway is through Dubai with the A380 on the longest leg between NZ or AUS and Dubai.

the plane will still be in service for 20-25-30 years, so no need for any disappointment, especially against an airline

If Airbus had listened to its customers and re-engine onto a more fuel efficient engine, they might still have orders in their orderbook

nathan

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#2181166 16-Feb-2019 08:12

Batman:

When I first heard of the A380, I thought to myself - that seriously requires A LOT of bums to keep the flights going. I guess not enough bums to fill the seats huh. I really thought the 747 capacity was the maximum you'd want on a route. Sometimes bigger isn't always better.

Now what does that mean for the 747-8 ... anyone flown that before?

747-8 is mainly cargo

nathan

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#2181168 16-Feb-2019 08:16

networkn:

Coil:

No idea why you would want an A380 when you can have the Queen of the Skies.

Where might you find a 747 now, they are all pretty much scrapped, except for Trumps plane.

Trumps plane is a 757-200

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nathan

5695 posts

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#2181169 16-Feb-2019 08:20

Coil:

Yeah I sort of blurred the lines there. The model of a big jumbo jet going to a central airport is slowly dwindling away for the more direct options. This is where the 787 and A350 come into play and why the 747 is still not being refreshed as a passenger liner. Still not much would stop a carrier from retrofitting a freighter to passenger if the need was there.

But, The 747 which is my all time favorite lives on which is my point.
I also absolutely adore these little quirky beasts, the Q400 is my favorite plane to fly in, love how they handle in take offs with cross wind and turbulence. Takes a man to fly these.

or a Seattle ground handler with a few mins in Flight Sim

SirHumphreyAppleby

2844 posts

Uber Geek

#2181171 16-Feb-2019 08:32

nathan:

Batman:

When I first heard of the A380, I thought to myself - that seriously requires A LOT of bums to keep the flights going. I guess not enough bums to fill the seats huh. I really thought the 747 capacity was the maximum you'd want on a route. Sometimes bigger isn't always better.

Now what does that mean for the 747-8 ... anyone flown that before?

747-8 is mainly cargo

It's unlikely we'll see an uptake in 747-8 orders with the A380 programme ending. Not many airlines were interested in either the 747 or A380. The 777 handles most of those routes more efficiently, and the 777-10 will carry almost as many passengers.

nathan:

Trumps plane is a 757-200

I think he's referring to Air Force One (to be replaced by two modified 747-8i aircraft). According to Wikipedia, 536 747 aircraft are still operating, including 12 of the -100 variant.

nathan

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#2181174 16-Feb-2019 08:47

SirHumphreyAppleby:

nathan:

Trumps plane is a 757-200

I think he's referring to Air Force One (to be replaced by two modified 747-8i aircraft). According to Wikipedia, 536 747 aircraft are still operating, including 12 of the -100 variant.

technically that's a VC-25. AF1 is any plane El Presidente is on

SirHumphreyAppleby

2844 posts

Uber Geek

#2181175 16-Feb-2019 08:48

nathan:

technically that's a VC-25. AF1 is any plane El Presidente is on

Yes.

nathan

5695 posts

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#2181176 16-Feb-2019 08:49

SirHumphreyAppleby:

nathan:

Batman:

When I first heard of the A380, I thought to myself - that seriously requires A LOT of bums to keep the flights going. I guess not enough bums to fill the seats huh. I really thought the 747 capacity was the maximum you'd want on a route. Sometimes bigger isn't always better.

Now what does that mean for the 747-8 ... anyone flown that before?

747-8 is mainly cargo

It's unlikely we'll see an uptake in 747-8 orders with the A380 programme ending. Not many airlines were interested in either the 747 or A380. The 777 handles most of those routes more efficiently, and the 777-10 will carry almost as many passengers.

logical, since the A380 is not available as a Cargo variant at all, it would have absolutely no effect of sales of Cargo variants of 747

nathan

5695 posts

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#2181178 16-Feb-2019 08:55

SirHumphreyAppleby:

nathan:

Batman:

When I first heard of the A380, I thought to myself - that seriously requires A LOT of bums to keep the flights going. I guess not enough bums to fill the seats huh. I really thought the 747 capacity was the maximum you'd want on a route. Sometimes bigger isn't always better.

Now what does that mean for the 747-8 ... anyone flown that before?

747-8 is mainly cargo

It's unlikely we'll see an uptake in 747-8 orders with the A380 programme ending. Not many airlines were interested in either the 747 or A380. The 777 handles most of those routes more efficiently, and the 777-10 will carry almost as many passengers.

it remains to be seen if the 777-10x will even exist, whereas the 777-8 and 777-9 have clear paths forward to production

Batman

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#2181182 16-Feb-2019 09:14

I don't get it, why do they make a787 and then make another 3 777 models? 787 is bad?

SirHumphreyAppleby

2844 posts

Uber Geek

#2181192 16-Feb-2019 09:29

Batman: I don't get it, why do they make a787 and then make another 3 777 models? 787 is bad?

No, the 787 is a great aircraft. It's not a replacement for the 777. It's more of a replacement for the 767. There is some overlap in capabilities with the earlier 777 models however. The new 777X variants fill the gap between the 787 and the 747-8I.

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