A380 not big enough

January 21, 2005

EUROPEAN manufacturer Airbus is under pressure to make the world's
biggest passenger aircraft even bigger.

Airlines including Emirates and Virgin Atlantic are already lobbying
for a stretch version of the plane, which could carry more than 1000
people on shorter, heavily travelled routes.

"We've been talking to them about doing a stretch version, a longer
version of the current plane that you saw today," Virgin Atlantic
chairman Richard Branson said at this week's A380 unveiling.

"They're looking like they may well go for that. That would be another
200 seats so you could get about 1100 people in it."

Emirates plans to use the A380 in a three-class, 489-seat configuration
on routes to Australia and New Zealand but it also will have a
two-class configuration carrying 644 people.

"Within seven hours of Dubai there are very, very dense routes,"
Emirates president Tim Clark said. "We've got the whole of the Indian
sub-continent, Pakistan, west Asia. You've got East Asia as well,
Thailand -- so there are plenty of places we can put this aeroplane to
work, no problems about that.

"Today we have 434-seat 777-300s in two classes and they're operating
at over 90 per cent in everything we do."

The first version of the giant aircraft was revealed on Tuesday in new
Airbus livery amid fanfare and political back-slapping. About 5000
guests, including the leaders of Britain, Germany, France and Spain,
watched the lavish unveiling in the aircraft's giant assembly building
in Toulouse, France.

The event is rumoured to have cost E5million ($8.6 million).

European leaders hailed the aircraft as a milestone in industrial and
technical co-operation that placed the European Union ahead of its
major rival, the US.

Airbus and some airline executives are predicting the giant aircraft
will prompt US manufacturer Boeing to axe production of the A380's
iconic predecessor, the Boeing 747.

Airline executives expect the A380 to begin a rigorous program of up to
1000 hours of flight testing in March, although one Airbus source said
it could be sooner.

Powered by giant engines certified for up to 80,000 pounds of thrust,
the super jumbo is capable of flying up to 15,000km with a promised
reduction in operating costs per seat of 15 per cent.

The aircraft is due to enter service on Singapore Airlines'
London-Sydney route by the end of June 2006.

Airbus is initially producing passenger and freighter versions of the
aircraft, and has sold 149 A380s to 14 operators.

Qantas has bought 12 and plans to deploy the first four on routes from
Melbourne and Sydney to Los Angeles towards the end of next year.

The aircraft is designed to meet higher pollution and noise
requirements now being demanded by authorities. Engine maker
Rolls-Royce says the Trent 900 engine chosen by Qantas is its lightest,
cleanest and quietest. With a 116-inch (295cm) fan diameter, the Trent
900 is also the biggest engine ever built by Rolls.

Four A380s have so far been assembled in Toulouse. The first to fly,
MSN001, has completed ground tests and will shortly be handed over to
the Airbus flight test department.

The ground tests probed the aircraft's hydraulics, landing gear,
electrics and flight controls. The aircraft was also pumped full of air
at a third higher than normal pressure to measure stresses that
pressurisation might cause on the cabin.

The flight test department has been performing a "virtual first flight
campaign" using the A380's onboard computers in cockpit systems prior
to the first flight.

Although there have been concerns that the aircraft is overweight,
Airbus says it has addressed the issue and does not expect any
problems.

Is it just me or does anyone else keep thinking about the Hindenburg when
they see the A380? "oh, the humanity"

taqai wrote:
"They're looking like they may well go for that. That would be another
200 seats so you could get about 1100 people in it."

The 380 is currently at 73 metres. So only 7 more metres can be added.
Assuming 32" pitch and no bulkhead, that is 8 additional rows of seats.
At 18 people per row (10 downstairs, 8 upstairs), that gets 144 more seats.

So the only way to get more than 144 extra pax is to reduce
business/first sections to increase seating density with coach seats.

Although there have been concerns that the aircraft is overweight,
Airbus says it has addressed the issue and does not expect any
problems.

They bought a giant threadmill on which the 380 could exercise inside
the hangar before it is allowed to go do some exercises outdoors :-)

taqai wrote:
"They're looking like they may well go for that. That would be another
200 seats so you could get about 1100 people in it."

The 380 is currently at 73 metres. So only 7 more metres can be added.
Assuming 32" pitch and no bulkhead, that is 8 additional rows of seats.
At 18 people per row (10 downstairs, 8 upstairs), that gets 144 more seats.

So the only way to get more than 144 extra pax is to reduce
business/first sections to increase seating density with coach seats.

Although there have been concerns that the aircraft is overweight,
Airbus says it has addressed the issue and does not expect any
problems.

They bought a giant threadmill on which the 380 could exercise inside
the hangar before it is allowed to go do some exercises outdoors :-)

wrote:

Is it just me or does anyone else keep thinking about the Hindenburg when
they see the A380? "oh, the humanity"


Hehe...maybe if we're lucky the A380 will crash while doing it's fly - by at
the Paris Air Show...

--
Best
Greg

"Gregory Morrow" gregorymorrowTUSHARSAMANTDOESBOLLYWOOD@earthlink. net
wrote in message nk.net...

wrote:

Is it just me or does anyone else keep thinking about the Hindenburg when
they see the A380? "oh, the humanity"


Hehe...maybe if we're lucky the A380 will crash while doing it's fly - by
at
the Paris Air Show...


And while you're at it, dock the 4000+ passenger cruise ships,
ah yank paranoia.

Nothing new there, the A380-800 was built as a shrinked version with the
"normal" A380-900 to follow.