Posted on 02/19/2019 6:32:53 PM PST by DUMBGRUNT
...The A380 might have built more momentum if not for production debacles. Around the time of the first test flight in 2005, Airbus realized it had underestimated the complexity of wiring the superjumbo. Managers discovered that French and German designers had used incompatible software.
...More setbacks followed. The engine of an A380 blew up during a passenger flight in 2010. Nobody was hurt, but it drew negative attention to the plane. Wing cracks discovered on many A380s led to costly repairs.
Customers, including Richard Branson’s Virgin Atlantic Airways Ltd., Air France-KLM SA and Qantas Airways Ltd. , canceled orders.
The snafu exposed deep cultural rifts inside the plane maker, which was led by French and German co-CEOs—a structure designed to appease government shareholders. In 2006, during the depth of the A380 crisis, Airbus ousted senior French and German executives. The next year it abandoned the co-CEO structure altogether.
(Excerpt) Read more at wsj.com ...
Flew on A380 twice both times from LA To Asia... The thing was a dam cattle car
A Terrorist’s dream.
You shouldnt have fretted. Whatever goes up will come down. Just a matter of how.
The A380 was a solution in search of a problem. “Because we can” is not a sound business model.
CC
Much like the Concorde?
To cite prior Freepers, the A380 was built by “AirbusTed”.
Airbus, Europe’s answer to Brazil’s Embraer...
Two aircraft companies that make even the Russians seem competent by comparison.
I flew a 380 from France last spring.
I was surprised how much I liked it but looking out the window, the wing looked overly complex.
Perhaps it is
Gee, that’s incredible.
I’m adopting a new motto....”If it Ain’t Boeing, I Ain’t Going!”
One of the big failures of 380 is the short-sighted planning. While it CAN likely be adjusted to cargo, it will not be very efficient at it, what with a single possible loading entrance.
The 747 was built with the cab at the top deck - which allows easy entrance from the front of the plane as well as the rear.
This has made it hugely popular for freighter companies, and with the take-off of UPS and FedEx and then amazon, Boeing has it in the bag.
Airbus will never be able to really take advantage of the space in the 380 with loading encumbered.
Needed special runways too. Longer and wider. and like you said, taxiways and gates.
Boeing still makes a variant of the 747. Its outlived the a380 and that was only around about 15 years.
Just remember, its not the fall that kills you.
i have flown a few times on them. All lower deck but they are roomy even in coach. Airbus in Asia are primary and really not bad at all. Much better than the 787. 777 are a mixed bag. Updated ones are great, but for room I prefer the 767 if updated.
Not a surprise. Airlines couldn’t fill the plane. Only a limited number of airports could accommodate it. There is also a huge lack of a secondary market. The big airlines bought them at a massive price tag and couldn’t sell them down to anyone else. No budget airline sure as hell doesn’t want one of these things.
It’s one of those situations where an idea is bigger than common sense. This plane was supposed to represent the new European unity and rising economic might. It was supposed to take over the market dominated by the 747 and put Boeing in trouble of the rising Airbus. But in the end, it never made any economic sense.
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Nope.
Boeing 777 X
Twin engine vs 4 on A380
Extremely fuel efficient, longer range than A 380
One cool feature - folding wingtips to allow it to use
existing ramps and gates
The French are saying Trump threatening China with tariffs scared the Chinese from further A380 buys... ho ho ho
Meanwhile Airbus shot itself in the foot because now China is building a copy of the current most used of airliners, the A320
Indeed, America designs systems, not just the crafts
No ability to convert it to cargo was nearly fatal too
Rode an A380 to Frankfurt a few years back. About 20 seconds after takeoff the thing suddenly nosed down for a few seconds and then started back up again. It felt like a commanded maneuver, not turbulence. Odd. The rest of the flight was not remarkable, and the plane didn’t seem any “better” or more comfortable than any other 2-aisle I’ve flown on. Lufthansa does do a great job of taking care of their passengers though.
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