Airbus A380 - bringing passengers to cruises in record numbers ??

[ 05-11-2005: Message edited by: Chris ]

(Who was it that said he engines were not powerful enough to get her off the ground? )

[ 04-27-2005: Message edited by: Malcolm @ cruisepage ]

And more pictures here.

[ 04-27-2005: Message edited by: Globaliser ]

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Originally posted by Sea Wanderer:
A fantasic thing for Europe and it really is a true pan-European effort too. The UK made the wings, engines and some of the electronics, etc.

The only doubts I have is that it's so big and can carry 840 people that if one comes down, the death toll will be hideous.

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The A380 is really a fantastic European achievment. Now Europe is not only dominating in building passenger ships, but could clearly demonstrates it`s leading role in the avionic industry. (...fusion being the next field to continue European lead )

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Originally posted by Ernst:

The A380 is really a fantastic European achievment. Now Europe is not only dominating in building passenger ships, but could clearly demonstrates it`s leading role in the avionic industry. (...fusion being the next field to continue European lead )

If I remeber right, the highest death toll in an aircraft accident was a collision of two 747 on an airport on the canary islands - comparable to number of passengeres one A380 can transport. Let`s hope an accident like this will not happen.

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Sadly this was a Dutch American affair it was at Teneriff Airport inn the summer off 1977. It was between a KLM Royal Dutch Airline and a PANAM Airliner. Both airliners where rerouted that day as many other because a Spanich airport close down fore a terrorist treat i believ.

The PANAM machine was carrier passengers who where going on a cruise. The KLM machine was also carrier holiday makers back to Amsterdam.

To make it short the Captain off the KLM machine made a huge misstake and take off without permission. The result we all no all passengers off the KLM machine died and i believe no more thene 60 off PANAM servived.

It was so tragic i was 6 years old and remember the rememberens service inn one off the KLM hangars at Schiphol airport. Hundreds off coffins where standing there brown fore the man and white fore the woman. It was a very very very sad images that till today i canot remove it frome my mind. Imagen those who left behind and was at that service.

Ben.

[ 04-27-2005: Message edited by: Maasdam ]

It was very impressif to see here flay obvious a great day fore pan European airline industry.
Amazing that Europe became a leader inn passenger transportation by sea and air.

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Originally posted by Ernst:
...comparable to number of passengeres one A380 can transport. Let`s hope an accident like this will not happen.

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The jam-ups at Customs and Immigration;
The jam-ups outbound from the US at the security inspections; and, worst of all.

All 800 plus passengers staring at the luggage carousels as bag after bag after bag....etc.

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Originally posted by Cambodge:
I can just see:

The jam-ups at Customs and Immigration;
The jam-ups outbound from the US at the security inspections; and, worst of all.

All 800 plus passengers staring at the luggage carousels as bag after bag after bag....etc.

Give me the smaller aircraft any day.

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The real test for the A380 is when it will have its first full load of passengers. Cambodge hit the nail on the head in his post, the logistics!

Lasuvidaboy, I also like the triple sevens. We now feverishly await Boeing’s 787 (7E7).

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Chris Cunard wrote:
...Qantas' 12 will only carry 500 pax.

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And Singapore Airlines will carry even less. Makes you wonder whether the A380 is really worth it. Airbus needs about a further 100 orders to break even. For their sake let's hope it works out.

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Originally posted by Malcolm @ cruisepage:

(Who was it that said he engines were not powerful enough to get her off the ground? )

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Noone said that. Your memory is failing you in your old age. What I did say a few months ago was that they still have to prove that they can get it off the ground. They have now done that. But now they have to see if they can get it off the ground with a full passenger and fuel load...there were only 6 on board today (all equippped with parachutes). So far, so good but there is still a long way to go before they deliver the first plane to a customer.

Last year someone on CT suggested the SAA would be a good candidate for their daily London to Johannesburgh flights. However SAA Have no plans to buy the A380. Their fleet renewal plans are known up to 2011. They are going to an all Airbus fleet and will be using A340-300's and A340-600's on all their transoceanic and intercontinental flights, but no A380's. All of their 747's will be disposed of.

Meanwhile Air Canada is going the other direction. They will be replacing all of their Airbus A340's and A330's with Boeing 777-200 ER's. (Their aging B767's will be replaced with B787's).

Cruise-related question: How many A380's does it take to fill QM2?

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Originally posted by Brian_O:

But now they have to see if they can get it off the ground with a full passenger and fuel load...

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The Tenerife disaster was in March 1977, not summer. Fortunately for airline passengers that airport is no longer used by commercial aircraft because it is fogged in so much. The frequent fog makes it the worst location on Tenerife to have an airport. A new commercial airport was built elsewhere on the island a few years later.

Brian

P.S. Almost forgot. The PanAm plane was a charter carrying a group from the US who were going on a cruise aboard Golden Odyssey.

[ 04-28-2005: Message edited by: Brian_O ]

Here is a link to a thread on Air Disaster in Canary Islands.

[ 04-28-2005: Message edited by: Ocean Liners ]

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Originally posted by Brian_O:

[...] But now they have to see if they can get it off the ground with a full passenger and fuel load...there were only 6 on board today (all equippped with parachutes). So far, so good but there is still a long way to go before they deliver the first plane to a customer.
[...] Brian

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We have 2005: do you really expect that a new plan is not taking off on it`s maiden flight? But if you need such proofs - The A380 was flying with a typical take off weight on it`s maiden flight - additional to the test equipment there were 22 t of ballast (water) aboard.

[ 04-28-2005: Message edited by: Ernst ]

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Originally posted by Chris Cunard:
Qantas' 12 will only carry 500 pax.

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Originally posted by bulbousbow:
And Singapore Airlines will carry even less. Makes you wonder whether the A380 is really worth it. Airbus needs about a further 100 orders to break even. For their sake let's hope it works out.

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The masses down the back only pay the costs of operating the aircraft. The profit is made from the low-density high-yield premium cabins. If you filled the aircraft with the maximum number of economy class seats, that's when you'd be struggling to make money.

In fact, QF is doing quite well at the moment from having taken about 15 seats out of their 747s. This was to install the new generation flat (wedgie) business class seat. Yields have gone up, probably rather more than the reduction in capacity.

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Originally posted by Brian_O:
What I did say a few months ago was that they still have to prove that they can get it off the ground. They have now done that. But now they have to see if they can get it off the ground with a full passenger and fuel load...there were only 6 on board today (all equippped with parachutes). So far, so good but there is still a long way to go before they deliver the first plane to a customer.

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Originally posted by lasuvidaboy:

That is what I thought as well. Here in L.A. when 3 or 4 747-400s arrive at the international terminal at the same time, the terminal is overloaded. I guess it is a sign of the times in travel to get as many bodies packed into a huge plane.

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Originally posted by Malcolm @ cruisepage:
When most people book a flight, they base there choice on 'price' and not type of aircraft or number of seats. Therefore it would seem to make good business sense to fill the A380 with as many seats as possible. O'k. very long haul flights might give you a few more inches leg room, but it is all about 'bums on seats', is it not?

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Anyway, the A380 will mostly be operating long-haul to very-long-haul sectors - I suspect that few will be less than 7 hours and many will be more than 12. I think the shortest initial A380 sector will probably be LHR-JFK, followed by the stub ends of the Kangaroo route from SIN and BKK to MEL and SYD.