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Airbus A380

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The Airbus A380 is a double-deck, four-engined airliner manufactured by EADS (Airbus S.A.S.). It is the largest passenger airliner in the world. It first flew on 27 April 2005 from Toulouse, France. Commercial flights are scheduled to begin in late 2007 after lengthy delays. During much of its development phase, the aircraft was known as the Airbus A3XX. The nickname Superjumbo has become associated with the A380.

The A380's upper deck extends along the entire length of the fuselage. This allows for a spacious cabin with 50% more floor space than the next largest airliner, the Boeing 747-400, and provides seating for 555 people in standard three-class configuration or up to 853 people in full economy class configuration.[1] Two models of the A380 are available for sale. The A380-800, the passenger model, is the largest passenger airliner in the world,[2] superseding the Boeing 747. The freighter version, the A380-800F, when built, will be one of the largest freight aircraft and will have a payload capacity exceeded only by the Antonov An-225.[3] The A380-800 has a maximum range of 15,000 km (8,000 nmi, sufficient to fly from Chicago to Sydney nonstop), and a cruising speed of Mach 0.85 (about 900 km/h or 560 mph at cruise altitude).[2]

Due to long delays in production of the A380, two customers cancelled their orders and several launch customers deferred delivery, or considered switching their order to the competing Boeing 747-8 and 777F aircraft, at significant cost to Airbus.[4][5]

History

Development

Airbus started the development of a very large airliner in the early 1990s, both to complete its own range of products and to break the dominance that Boeing had enjoyed in this market segment since the early 1970s with its 747. McDonnell Douglas pursued a similar strategy with its ultimately unsuccessful MD-12 design. As each manufacturer looked to build a successor to the 747, they knew there was room for only one new aircraft to be profitable in the 600 to 800 seat market segment. Each knew the risk of splitting such a niche market, as had been demonstrated by the simultaneous debut of the Lockheed L-1011 and the McDonnell Douglas DC-10: either aircraft met the market’s needs, but the market could profitably sustain only one model, eventually resulting in Lockheed's departure from the civil airliner business. In January 1993, Boeing and several companies in the Airbus consortium started a joint feasibility study of an aircraft known as the Very Large Commercial Transport (VLCT), aiming to form a partnership to share the limited market.

The first completed A380 at the "A380 Reveal" event in Toulouse

In June 1994, Airbus began developing its own very large airliner, designated the A3XX. Airbus considered several designs, including an odd side-by-side combination of two fuselages from the A340, which was Airbus’s largest jet at the time.[1] The A3XX was pitted against the VLCT study and Boeing’s own New Large Aircraft successor to the 747, which evolved into the 747X, a stretched version of the 747 with the fore body "hump" extended rearwards to accommodate more passengers. The joint VLCT effort ended in July 1996, and Boeing suspended the 747X program in January 1997. From 1997 to 2000, as the East Asian financial crisis darkened the market outlook, Airbus refined its design, targeting a 15 to 20 percent reduction in operating costs over the existing Boeing 747-400. The A3XX design converged on a double-decker layout that provided higher seat capacities than a traditional single-deck design.

On 19 December 2000, the supervisory board of newly restructured Airbus voted to launch a €8.8 billion program to build the A3XX, re-christened as the A380, with 55 orders from six launch customers. The A380 designation was a break from previous sequential Airbus designations because the numeral 8 resembles the double-deck cross section, and is a lucky number in some Asian cultures. The aircraft’s final configuration was frozen in early 2001, and manufacturing of the first A380 wing box component started on 23 January 2002. The development cost of the A380 had grown to €11 billion when the first aircraft was completed.

Boeing, meanwhile, resurrected the 747X program several times before finally launching the 747-8 Intercontinental in November 2005 (with entry into service planned for 2009). Boeing chose to develop a derivative for the 400 to 500 seat market, instead of matching the A380's capacity.

Testing

Flight test engineer's station on the lower deck of A380 F-WWOW at the 2006 Farnborough International Airshow
A380 F-WWDD in Emirates Airline livery at the 2005 Dubai Airshow

The first A380 prototype, serial number 001 and registration F-WWOW, was unveiled at a ceremony in Toulouse on 18 January 2005. Its maiden flight took place at 8:29 UTC (10:29 a.m. local time) 27 April 2005. The prototype, equipped with Trent 900 engines, departed runway 32L of Toulouse Blagnac International Airport with a flight crew of six headed by test pilot Jacques Rosay, carrying 22 short tons (20 metric tons) of flight test instrumentation and water ballasts. The take-off weight of the aircraft was 421 tonnes (464 short tons); although this was only 75% of its maximum take-off weight, it was the heaviest take-off weight of any passenger airliner ever flown.

In mid-November 2005, the A380 embarked on a tour of Southeast Asia and Australia for promotional and for long-haul flight testing purposes, visiting Singapore, Brisbane, Sydney, Melbourne and Kuala Lumpur. During this tour, the colours of Singapore Airlines, Qantas and Malaysia Airlines were applied in addition to the Airbus house colours. On 19 November, an A380 flew in full Emirates colours at the Dubai Air Show.

On 10 January 2006, the A380 made its first transatlantic flight to Medellín in Colombia, to test engine performance at a high altitude airport. It arrived in North America on 6 February, when an A380 landed in Iqaluit, Nunavut in Canada for cold-weather testing. The same aircraft then flew to Singapore to participate in the Asian Aerospace 2006 exhibition, in full Singapore Airlines livery.

On 26 March 2006, the A380 underwent evacuation certification in Hamburg in Germany. The test, performed to meet regulatory requirements, involved evacuating 853 passengers and 20 crew from the aircraft within 90 seconds, with 8 of the 16 exits blocked. The evacuation was successfully completed in 78 seconds.[6] Three days later, the A380 received European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) and United States Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) approval to carry up to 853 passengers, indicating that the evacuation trial had met their certification standards.[7]

Five A380s have been built for testing and demonstration purposes. The first A380 slated for delivery to a customer, serial number 003 and registration F-WWSA, took to the air in May 2006. The maiden flight of the first A380 with GP7200 engines (F-WWEA) took place on 25 August 2006.

On 4 September 2006, the first full passenger-carrying flight test took place.[8] The aircraft flew from Toulouse with 474 Airbus employees on board, in the first of a series of flights to test passenger facilities and comfort. In November 2006, a further series of route proving flights took place to demonstrate the aircraft's performance for 150 flight hours under typical airline operating conditions.

As of March 2007, nine A380s had flown, and the five A380s in the test program had logged over 2,900 hours during 1995 test flights. During testing the A380 visited 20 countries: Australia, Canada, China, Colombia, Ethiopia, France, Germany, Iceland, Ireland, Japan, Malaysia, Portugal, Singapore, South Africa, South Korea, Spain, Thailand, the United Arab Emirates, the United Kingdom and United States of America. Airbus obtained the A380 type certificate from the EASA and FAA on 12 December 2006 in a joint ceremony at the company's French headquarters.[9] The airframe still needs to receive production certification.

Lufthansa is conducting 'route-proving' flights carrying passengers from Frankfurt to New York-JFK, Hong Kong and Dulles from 17 March through 29 March with serial number 007 aircraft.[10]

Delivery delays

A380 in Malaysia Airlines Livery

Initial production of the A380 was plagued by a series of delays attributed to the 500 km (300 miles) of wiring in each aircraft. Airbus cited as underlying causes the complexity of the cabin wiring, its concurrent design and production, the use of two incompatible versions of the CATIA computer-aided design software, the high degree of customisation for each airline, and failures of configuration management and change control.[11][12] Deliveries would be pushed back by nearly two years.

While Airbus attributes the delays entirely to wiring, industry analyst Richard Aboulafia, noting that the first A380 will be around 5.5 tons heavier than intended, speculates that the weight problems "[go] a long way in explaining the delay", and that "wiring alone did not explain what we were all hearing. It sounds like weight-reduction design changes are a big part of the delay, too."[13]

Airbus announced the first delay in June 2005 and notified airlines that delivery would slip by six months, with Singapore Airlines expecting the first A380 in the last quarter of 2006, Qantas getting its first delivery in April 2007 and Emirates receiving aircraft before 2008. This reduced the number of planned deliveries by the end of 2009 from about 120 to 90–100.

On 13 June 2006 Airbus announced a second delay, with the delivery schedule undergoing an additional shift of six to seven months. Although the first delivery was still slated before the end of 2006, deliveries in 2007 would drop to only 9 aircraft, and deliveries by the end of 2009 would be cut to 70–80 aircraft. The announcement caused a 26% drop in the share price of Airbus's parent, EADS, and led to the departure of EADS CEO Noël Forgeard, Airbus CEO Gustav Humbert, and A380 program manager Charles Champion.[14] In the wake of the new delay, Malaysia Airlines and ILFC were reported to be considering the cancellation of their orders.[15][16] Launch customers Singapore Airlines, Emirates and Qantas also were reported to be angered by the delays and expecting compensation.[17] However, on 21 July 2006, Singapore Airlines ordered a further 9 A380s and stated that Airbus had "demonstrated to our satisfaction that the engineering design for the A380 is sound [and that] it has performed well in flight and certification tests and the delays in its delivery have been caused more by production, rather than technical, issues."[18]

On 3 October 2006, upon completion of a review of the A380 program, the then CEO of Airbus, Christian Streiff, announced a third delay.[19] The largest delay yet, it pushed the first delivery for Singapore Airlines to October 2007, to be followed by 13 deliveries in 2008, 25 in 2009, and the full production rate of 45 aircraft per year in 2010. The delay also increased the earnings shortfall projected by Airbus through 2010 to €4.8 billion.[4] The customer with the largest A380 order, Emirates, saw its first delivery pushed back to August 2008 and said as a result that it was considering scaling back its order,[20] potentially in favour of the rival Boeing 747-8.[4] Virgin Atlantic deferred its deliveries by four years, to 2013.[21] The third delay was followed by the first cancellations to hit the A380 program. In November 2006, FedEx dropped its order for A380F freighters in favor of the Boeing 777 Freighter.[22] In March 2007, the last remaining customer for the A380F, UPS, announced the cancellation of its order.[23] Airbus suspended work on the freighter version in order to concentrate on delivering the passenger version, but said the freighter remained on offer.[24] As of March 2007, Airbus estimated a 2014 entry into service for the A380F.[25]

Entry into service

Singapore Airlines plans to use its first aircraft, in a 485-seat configuration, on its London–Singapore–Sydney (the kangaroo route) service. The airline has not given a specific date for its entry into service, though the latest updates state the end of 2007.[19] Subsequent routes for Singapore Airlines may include the Singapore–San Francisco route via Hong Kong, as well as direct flights to Paris and Frankfurt. Qantas has announced it will use the A380, in a 501-seat configuration, on its Melbourne and Sydney to Los Angeles routes. Air France's aircraft will be used on the Paris to Montreal and New York routes.

Design

A380 cabin cross section, showing economy class seating

The new Airbus is sold in two models. The A380-800 can carry 555 passengers in a three-class configuration or up to 853 passengers in a single-class economy configuration. The design range for the -800 model is 15,000 km (8,000 nmi).[2] The second model, the A380-800F freighter, will carry 150 tonnes of cargo 10,400 km (5,600 nmi).[3] Future variants may include an A380-900 stretch seating about 650 passengers (or up to 1,000 passengers in an all economy configuration) and an extended range version with the same passenger capacity as the A380-800.[1]

The A380's wing is sized for a Maximum Take-Off Weight (MTOW) over 650 metric tonnes in order to accommodate these future versions, albeit with some strengthening required.[1] The stronger wing (and structure) is used on the A380-800F freighter. This common design approach sacrifices some fuel efficiency on the A380-800 passenger model, but Airbus estimates that the sheer size of the aircraft, coupled with the significant advances in technology described below, will provide lower operating costs per passenger than all current variants of Boeing 747.

Cockpit

Airbus used similar cockpit layout, procedures and handling characteristics to those of other Airbus aircraft, to reduce crew training costs. Accordingly, the A380 features an improved glass cockpit, and fly-by-wire flight controls linked to side-sticks. The improved cockpit displays feature eight 15-by-20 cm (6-by-8-inch) liquid crystal displays, all of which are physically identical and interchangeable. These comprise two Primary Flight Displays, two navigation displays, one engine parameter display, one system display and two Multi-Function Displays. These MFDs are new with the A380, and provide an easy-to-use interface to the flight management system—replacing three multifunction control and display units. They include QWERTY keyboards and trackballs, interfacing with a graphical "point-and-click" display navigation system.[26]

Engines

A Rolls-Royce Trent 900 engine on the wing of an Airbus A380.

Either the Rolls-Royce Trent 900 or Engine Alliance GP7200 turbofans may power the A380. Both are derived from the predecessors Trent 800, GE90 and PW4000. The Trent 900 core is a scaled version of the Trent 500, but incorporates the swept fan technology of the stillborn Trent 8104.[27] The GP7200 has a GE90-derived core and PW4090-derived fan and low-pressure turbo-machinery.[28] Noise reduction was a driving requirement for the A380, and particularly affects engine design. Both engine types are expected to allow the aircraft to meet the stringent QC/2 departure noise limits set by London's Heathrow Airport, which is expected to become a key destination for the A380.[1]

Advanced materials

Composite materials make up 25% of the A380's airframe, by weight. Carbon-fibre reinforced plastic, glass-fiber reinforced plastic and quartz-fiber reinforced plastic are used extensively in wings, fuselage sections, tail surfaces, and doors. The A380 is the first commercial airliner with a central wing box made of carbon fiber reinforced plastic, and it is the first to have a wing cross-section that is smoothly contoured. Other commercial airliners have wings that are partitioned in sections. The flowing, continuous cross-section allows for maximum aerodynamic efficiency. Thermoplastics are used in the leading edges of the slats. The new material GLARE (GLAss-REinforced fibre metal laminate) is used in the upper fuselage and on the stabilizers' leading edges. This aluminium-glass-fibre laminate is lighter and has better corrosion and impact resistance than conventional aluminium alloys used in aviation. Unlike earlier composite materials, it can be repaired using conventional aluminium repair techniques.[29] Newer weldable aluminium alloys are also used. This enables the widespread use of laser welding manufacturing techniques — eliminating rows of rivets and resulting in a lighter, stronger structure.[citation needed]

Avionics architecture

The A380 employs an Integrated Modular Avionics (IMA) architecture, first used in advanced military aircraft such as the F-22 Raptor and the Eurofighter Typhoon. It is based on a commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) design. Many previous dedicated single-purpose avionics computers are replaced by dedicated software housed in onboard processor modules and servers. This cuts the number of parts, provides increased flexibility without resorting to customised avionics, and reduces costs by using commercially available computing power.[26] Together with IMA, the A380 avionics are very highly networked. The data communication networks use Avionics Full-Duplex Switched Ethernet, following the ARINC 664 standard. The data networks are switched, full-duplexed, star-topology and based on 100baseTX fast-Ethernet. This reduces the amount of wiring required and minimizes latency. [30] The Network Systems Server (NSS) is the heart of A380 paperless cockpit. It eliminates the bulky manuals and charts traditionally carried by the pilots. The NSS has enough inbuilt robustness to do away with onboard backup paper documents. The A380's network and server system stores data and offers electronic documentation, providing a required equipment list, navigation charts, performance calculations, and an aircraft logbook. All are accessible to the pilot from two additional 27 cm (11 inch) diagonal LCDs, each controlled by its own keyboard and control cursor device mounted in the foldable table in front of each pilot.[30]

The fourth A380 overflies Filton Airfield, England.

Systems

Power-by-wire flight control actuators are used for the first time in civil service, backing up the primary hydraulic flight control actuators. During certain manoeuvres, they augment the primary actuators. They have self-contained hydraulic and electrical power supplies. They are used as electro-hydrostatic actuators (EHA) in the aileron and elevator, and as electrical backup hydrostatic actuators (EBHA) for the rudder and some spoilers.[31]

The aircraft's 350 bar (35 MPa or 5,000 psi) hydraulic system is an improvement over the typical 210 bar (21 MPa or 3,000 psi) system found in other commercial aircraft since the 1940s. First used in military aircraft, higher pressure hydraulics reduce the size of pipelines, actuators and other components for overall weight reduction. The 350 bar pressure is generated by eight de-clutchable hydraulic pumps. Pipelines are typically made from titanium and the system features both fuel and air-cooled heat exchangers. The hydraulics system architecture also differs significantly from other airliners. Self-contained electrically powered hydraulic power packs, instead of a secondary hydraulic system, are the backups for the primary systems. This saves weight and reduces maintenance.

The A380 uses four 150 kVA variable-frequency electrical generators eliminating the constant speed drives for better reliability. The A380 uses aluminium power cables instead of copper for greater weight savings due to the number of cables used for an aircraft of this size and complexity. The electrical power system is fully computerized and many contactors and breakers have been replaced by solid-state devices for better performance and increased reliability.[31]

The A380 features a bulbless illumination system. LEDs are employed in the cabin, cockpit, cargo and other fuselage areas. The cabin lighting features programmable multi-spectral LEDs capable of creating a cabin ambience simulating daylight, night or shades in between. On the outside of the aircraft, HID lighting is used to give brighter, whiter and better quality illumination. These two technologies provide brightness and a service life superior to traditional incandescent light bulbs.

The A380 was initially planned without thrust reversers, as Airbus believed it to have ample braking capacity. The FAA disagreed, and Airbus elected to fit only the two inboard engines with them. The two outboard engines do not have reversers, reducing the amount of debris blown up during landing. The A380 features electrically actuated thrust reversers, giving them better reliability than their pneumatic or hydraulic equivalents, in addition to saving weight.

Passenger provisions

Initial publicity stressed the comfort and space of the A380's cabin, which offers room for such installations as relaxation areas, bars, duty-free shops, and beauty salons. One A380 customer likely to use innovative amenities is Virgin Atlantic Airways, which has a bar in Business Class on its aircraft, and has announced plans to include casinos, double beds, a gymnasium and showers on its A380s. The A380 will provide more and wider seats, lower seat-distance costs and better amenities. It also gives 50% lower cabin noise than a 747 and a lower cabin altitude of 5000ft; both features are expected to reduce the effects of jetlag.

At 555 passengers, the A380's seating capacity represents a 35% increase over the 747-400 in a standard three-class configuration, along with a 50% larger cabin volume — producing more space per passenger. If, however, the plane is ordered in an all-economy-class configuration, it can hold up to 853 passengers, its maximum certified carrying capacity.[6]

Airport compatibility

The A380 was designed to fit within an 80 x 80 m airport gate, and can land or take off on any runway that can take a Boeing 747. However, airports used by the A380 in commercial service may need infrastructure modifications. Its large wingspan can require some taxiway and apron reconfigurations, to maintain safe separation margins when two of the aircraft pass each other. Taxiway shoulders may be required to be paved to reduce the likelihood of foreign object damage caused to (or by) the outboard engines, which overhang more than 25 m (80 ft) from the centre line of the aircraft. Any taxiway or runway bridge must be capable of supporting the A380's maximum weight. The terminal gate must be sized such that the A380's wings do not block adjacent gates, and may also provide multiple jetway bridges for simultaneous boarding on both decks. Service vehicles with lifts capable of reaching the upper deck must be obtained, as well as tractors capable of handling the A380's maximum ramp weight.

The A380 test aircraft have begun a campaign of airport compatibility testing, to verify the modifications already made at several large airports. To date, airports have been visited for compatibility testing in Bangkok, Brisbane, Frankfurt, Hong Kong, Johannesburg, Kuala Lumpur, London, Shannon, Melbourne, Seoul, Singapore, Sydney, Tokyo, Düsseldorf, Munich, Vancouver and Toronto. The first visit to the United States occurred on 19 March 2007, with a simultaneous arrival of two A380s in Los Angeles and New York City.[1] Chicago's O'Hare International Airport was visited by an A380 on 20 March 2007. The New York JFK visit featured a large media turnout, and on 21 March, journalists boarded the A380 for a two-hour demonstration flight.[32] On 25 March 2007, an A380 from Frankfurt, Germany landed at Washington-Dulles International Airport outside of Washington, DC with 500 passengers [2].

Production

The A380 transporter Ville de Bordeaux

Major structural sections of the A380 are built in France, Germany, Spain, and the United Kingdom. Due to their size, they are brought to the assembly hall in Toulouse in France by surface transportation, rather than by the A300-600ST Beluga aircraft used for other Airbus models. Components of the A380 are provided by suppliers from around the world; the five largest contributors, by value, are Rolls-Royce, SAFRAN, United Technologies, General Electric, and Goodrich.[33]

The front and rear sections of the fuselage are loaded on an Airbus Roll-on/roll-off (RORO) ship, Ville de Bordeaux, in Hamburg in northern Germany, whence they are shipped to the United Kingdom.[34] The wings, which are manufactured at Filton in Bristol and Broughton in north Wales, are transported by barge to Mostyn docks, where the ship adds them to its cargo. In Saint-Nazaire in western France, the ship trades the fuselage sections from Hamburg for larger, assembled sections, some of which include the nose. The ship unloads in Bordeaux. Afterwards, the ship picks up the belly and tail sections by Construcciones Aeronáuticas SA in Cadiz in southern Spain, and delivers them to Bordeaux. From there, the A380 parts are transported by barge to Langon, and by oversize road convoys to the assembly hall in Toulouse. New wider roads, canal systems and barges were developed to deliver the A380 parts. After assembly, the aircraft are flown to Hamburg to be furnished and painted. Airbus sized the production facilities and supply chain for a production rate of four A380s per month.[34]

Orders

Fourteen airlines have ordered the A380, including an order from aircraft lessor ILFC. Total orders for the A380 stand at 157, of which 156 are firm.[35] Orders for the freighter model reached 27 but dwindled to zero following the production delays. Airbus expects to sell a total of 750 aircraft, and estimates break-even at 420 units, increased from 270 due to the delays and the falling exchange rate of the US dollar.[11] Industry analysts anticipate between 400 and 880 sales by 2025.[33] As of 2006, the list price of an A380 is US$ 296 to 316 million, depending on equipment installed.[36]

Orders sorted by customer
Airline EIS Type Engine
A380-800 A380-800F Options EA RR
Air France 2009 10 4 *
China Southern 2008 5 *
Emirates 2008[20] 43 *
Etihad Airways 2008 4 *
ILFC[3] 2013 10 4  4
Kingfisher Airlines 2010 5
Korean Air 2008 5 3 *
Lufthansa 2009 15 10 *
Malaysia Airlines 2008 6 *
Qantas 2008 20 4
Qatar Airways 2009 2 2
Singapore Airlines 2007 19 6 10
Thai Airways 2010 6
Virgin Atlantic 2013[37] 6 6
Unidentified VIP customer 1
Sub-totals 157 0 39 72 66
Total 157  (firm: 156) 138


Orders sorted by chronology
Announcement
Date 		Confirmation
Date 		Airline EIS Type Engine
A380-800 A380-800F Options EA RR
30 April 2000 4 November 2001 Emirates 2008[20] 5 2 *
24 July 2000 18 June 2001 Air France [4] 2009 10 4 *
25 July 2000 17 June 2001 ILFC 5 5 4
29 September 2000 12 July 2001 Singapore Airlines [5] 2007 10 15 *
29 November 2000 6 March 2001 Qantas 2008 12 12 *
15 December 2000 28 April 2001 Virgin Atlantic 2013[37] 6 6 *
16 January 2001 12 July 2002 FedEx [6] 2010 10 10 *
27 February 2001 8 December 2003 Qatar Airways [7] 2009 2 2
4 November 2001 4 November 2001 Emirates 2008[20] 15 *
6 December 2001 20 December 2001 Lufthansa[8] 2009 15 10 *
10 January 2003 11 December 2003 Malaysia Airlines [9] 2008 6 *
16 June 2003 16 June 2003 Emirates 2008 21 *
27 August 2004 28 December 2004 Thai Airways 2010 6
10 January 2005 6 December 2005 UPS [10] 2010 10 10 *
18 January 2005 23 October 2003 Korean Air [11] 2008 5 3 *
31 January 2005 20 December 2004 Etihad Airways [12] 2008 4 *
31 January 2005 1 May 2005 China Southern [13] 2008 5 *
15 June 2005 15 June 2005 Kingfisher Airlines 2010 5
May 2006 April, 2006 Emirates 2 -2 *
23 July 2006 20 December 2006 Singapore Airlines [14] 9 -9
29 October 2006 21 December 2006 Qantas [15] 2008 8 -8
7 November 2006 FedEx [16] n/a -10 -10  
4 December 2006 ILFC[17] 2013 5 -5
16 February 2007 Unidentified VIP customer[18] 1
2 March 2007 UPS [19][20] n/a -10 -10  
Sub-Totals: 157 0 39 72 66
Totals 157  (firm: 156) 138

Entries shaded in pink have been announced, but have not yet signed a firm contract.

Technical concerns

Several concerns about the A380 have arisen during its development. Airbus has addressed these concerns as required to obtain a type certificate from the European Aviation Safety Agency and its American counterpart, the Federal Aviation Administration.

Ground operations

The A380's 20-wheel main landing gear

Early critics claimed that the A380 would damage taxiways and other airport surfaces. However, the pressure exerted by its wheels is lower than that of a Boeing 747 or Boeing 777 because the A380 has 22 wheels, four more than the 747, and eight more than the 777. Airbus measured pavement loads using a 540-tonne (595 short tons) ballasted test rig, designed to replicate the landing gear of the A380. The rig was towed over a section of pavement at Airbus' facilities that had been specially instrumented with embedded load sensors.

Based on its wingspan, the U.S. FAA classifies the A380 as a Design Group VI aircraft, requiring a width of 60 m (200 ft) for runways and 30 m (100 ft) for taxiways, compared to 45 m (150 ft) and 23 m (75 ft) for Design Group V aircraft such as the Boeing 747.[38] Airbus claimed that the A380 could safely operate on Group V runways and taxiways, without the need for widening. The FAA first considered limiting the taxiing speed of the A380 to 25 km/h (15 mph) on Group V infrastructure, but has since issued waivers related to the speed restriction and some of the proposed runway widening requirements.[39][40]

As of late 2005, there were concerns that the jet blast from the A380's engines could be dangerous to ground vehicles and airport terminal buildings, as more thrust is required to move its greater mass (590 t compared to 412.8 t for a 747). The FAA has established a commission[41] to determine if new safety regulations seem necessary, and it will make appropriate recommendations to the ICAO. According to The Wall Street Journal, "The debate is supposed to be entirely about safety, but industry officials and even some participants acknowledge that, at the very least, an overlay of diplomatic and trade tensions complicates matters." The FAA commission has stated it will not enact unilateral safeguards for the A380, only those imposed by the ICAO.[42]

Wake turbulence

The A380 generates more wake turbulence on takeoff and landing than existing aircraft types, requiring increased airport approach and departure spacing for following aircraft.[43]

In 2005, the International Civil Aviation Organization recommended that provisional separation criteria for the A380 be substantially greater than for the 747 because preliminary flight test data suggested a stronger wake than the 747.[44] These criteria were in effect while the A380 Wake Vortex Steering Group, with representatives from the JAA, Eurocontrol, the FAA, and Airbus, refined its 3-year study of the issue with additional flight testing. In September 2006, the working group presented its conclusions to the ICAO, which is expected to issue final guidance on the issue in November 2006. The working group concluded that an aircraft trailing an A380 during approach needs to maintain a separation of 6 nmi, 8 nmi and 10 nmi respectively for ICAO "Heavy", "Medium", and "Light" aircraft categories, instead of the traditional 4 nmi, 5 nmi and 6 nmi spacing. However, the working group found no need to limit the A380's trailing distance behind another aircraft, potentially making up for some of the increased spacing behind the A380.[43] On departure behind an A380, the working group concluded that "Heavy" aircraft are required to wait two minutes, and "Medium"/"Light" aircraft three minutes for time based operations. Finally, the working group did not recommend any restrictions on vertical or horizontal separation criteria during cruise.

Wing strength

During the destructive wing strength certification test, the test wing of the A380 failed to meet the certification requirement of 150% of limit load.[45] Limit load is the maximum load expected during operation in the design life of an aircraft. The test wing buckled between the inboard and outboard engines at 147% of limit load, as the wing tip reached a vertical deflection of 7.4 m (24.3 ft). Airbus initially stated that the test article represented an early design, and that the load requirement would be verified by analysis of changes already made. Subsequently, however, Airbus announced that modifications adding 30 kg to the wing would be made to provide the required strength.


Specifications

Size comparison between four of the largest aircraft. Airbus A380 (red), Boeing 747-8I (blue), AN-225 (green) and Hughes H-4 (yellow). Click to enlarge.
Measurement A380-800 A380F
Cockpit crew Two
Seating capacity 555 (3-class)
853 (1-class)		 12 couriers
Length 73 m (239 ft 6 in)
Span 79.8 m (261 ft 10 in)
Height 24.1 m (79 ft 1 in)
Wheelbase 30.4 m (99 ft 8 in)
Outside fuselage width 7.14 m (23 ft 6 in)
Cabin width, main deck 6.60 m (21 ft 8 in)
Cabin width, upper deck 5.94 m (19 ft 6 in)
Wing area 845 m² (9,100 ft²)
Operating empty weight 276,800 kg (610,200 lb) 252,200 kg (556,000 lb)
Maximum take-off weight 560,000 kg (1,235,000 lb) 590,000 kg (1,300,000 lb)
Maximum payload 90,800 kg (200,000 lb) 152,400 kg (336,000 lb)
Cruising speed 0.85 Mach
Maximum speed 0.89 Mach
Range at design load 15,000 km (8,000 nmi) 10,400 km (5,600 nmi)
Service ceiling 13,115 m (43,000 feet)
Maximum fuel capacity 310,000 L (81,890 US gal) 310,000 L (81,890 US gal),
356,000 L (94,000 US gal) option
Engines (4 x) GP7270
Trent 970		 GP7277
Trent 977

Trivia

  • The A380 was nicknamed "Megaliner" during early development within Airbus.
  • Each A380 contains 530 km (330 miles) of cables, 100,000 wires, and 40,300 connectors.
  • The fictional aircraft (the E-474) in the 2005 film Flightplan clearly resembles an A380.
  • During its maiden trip to the United States, air traffic control used the term "super" following the call sign to distinguish the A380 from "heavy" aircraft.[46]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e Norris, Guy (2005). Airbus A380: Superjumbo of the 21st Century. Zenith Press. ISBN 978-0-7603-2218-5. {{cite book}}: Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
  2. ^ a b c "A380 Specifications". Airbus S.A.S. Retrieved 2006-09-16.
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  5. ^ Big plane, big problems
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  10. ^ Lufthansa Plans March Visit to Dulles
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  13. ^ Wallace, James (28 October 2006). "Airbus A380 a bit too superjumbo". Seattle Post-Intelligencer. Retrieved 2007-01-21. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
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  15. ^ Thomas, Geoffrey (20 June 2006). "MAS prepares to cancel A380 order". ATWOnline. Retrieved 2006-09-16. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  16. ^ Karp, Aaron (21 June 2006). "ILFC considers $3 billion A380 cancellation as pressure on Airbus mounts". ATWOnline. Retrieved 2006-09-16. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  17. ^ Jamieson, Bob (14 June 2006). "More setbacks for Airbus Superjumbo jet". ABC News. Retrieved 2006-09-16. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
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  23. ^ UPS to Cancel A380 Freighter Order
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  32. ^ A380 Test Drive: Onboard the Superjumbo
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  37. ^ a b Goldstein, Steve (26 October 2006). "Virgin Atlantic to delay A380 deliveries until 2013". Dow Jones MarketWatch. Retrieved 2006-10-26. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
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  40. ^ "Use of non-standard 75-foot-wide straight taxiway sections for Airbus 380 taxiing operations" (PDF). FAA. April 2006. Retrieved 2006-09-24. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  41. ^ "Airbus A380 faces dispute with US aviation officials - report." Kjetland, R. Forbes. 5 October 2005.
  42. ^ "FAA: Wake Turbulence Rules May Have To Be Rewritten." Aero-News.net. 7 October 2005.
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  46. ^ "Interim Procedures for A380 Proving and Promotional Flights" (PDF). FAA. Retrieved 2007-03-20.

Media

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Airbus A380.
Airbus A380 rolling to runway
With the Red Arrows at Farnborough, 2006
Landing at Farnborough, 2006
Overflight showing gear deployment, Farnborough 2006
Airbus A380 F-WWOW (MSN 001) performing a display flight at Farnborough, 2006
Banked turn, Farnborough 2006
Take-off, Farnborough 2006

See also

Related development

Aircraft of comparable role, configuration, and era

Related lists

Template:Giant aircraft

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