[DUMBGRUNT]

Bigger is not always better.

[Yo-Yo]

Airbus gambled on increased increased air travel demand and a fixed number of landing slots available at large hub airports would mean a demand for larger capacity aircraft to maximize the number of people moved per landing slot.

Boeing gambled on a switch from hub-and-spoke to direct flights between smaller regional airports, and launched the 787 to serve the long haul, lower capacity market.

Apparently Boeing gambled correctly. However, Airbus did find a willing customer in Emirates and other Middle Eastern airlines, which do see spikes in air traffic surrounding the annual Haj.

[lurk]

Eventually all air travel will end, when the Collectivists and muslins rule.

[Pontiac]

Meanwhile, the Boeing 747 looks to live on, even as demand from carriers also shrinks.

The original jumbo jet, which has flown for 50 years, is finding new life as a freighter for UPS (UPS) and FedEx (FDX).

Kind of makes me sad that the 747 is to be relegated to cargo duty.

I have only flown in the 747 once but it struck me as an amazing airplane.

It is also the most comfortable I have ever been when flying. In comparison the 787 today is like flying sitting in a Port-a-Potty.

[realcleanguy]

If Cortez and the Marxists have their way, air travel in the USA will end in 12years. So get in your vacations now. No more vacations with the New Green Deal. No more Sunday drives, no more Taco Tuesdays, no more cheese in the stores. end of all pork rib parties

It will be eating grass like NK, and wearing one set of clothes all year long, because nothing else will exist here

[pepsi_junkie]

The day they announced these new gigantic planes I knew they were doomed. They said "they'll be lucurious, more roomy and with lounges and bars, blah blah blah". I fly too much to fall for that. To my way of thinking they'd fill them to the brim with tiny seats wedged tightly together. No lounges, no bars. It would take forever to load and unload them so forget about making your connection. The flying experience would be 100% nightmare.

But I don't think that's what killed them. No airports wanted to rebuild themselves to accommodate them. Good.

[libh8er]

Sad. I have flown the 380 a number of times and it’s a quiet comfortable plane.

[Rummyfan]

It’s a white elephant. Too large for many airports to accommodate. They will sell a bunch of them - or resell - to carriers taking muzzies to Saudi Arabia for their pilgrimage. That’s about it.

[ldish]

Never been on one - Good riddance A380 - Too many people I don’t know or care to know, in too small of an area, for too long of a time, dependent on technology probably written in part by some geek while he was also gaming, getting fretos and picking his nose....although I have nothing against most of that...except the small area is 43,000 feet above the ground and I probably don’t like most of the people!

[ldish]

But I love the 747 - give me the 4 engines and the layout any day....been on them 100 times - 2 million miles!

[Zathras]

I flew on one this spring.
BIG plane!

[Kickass Conservative]

The 747 was designed by Engineers using Slide Rules.

The A380 was designed by Engineers using Computers.