In a statement, Lufthansa confirms: “Today we have decided to return the highly popular A380 back to service.” But just recently, an airline spokesman said: the likelihood that the plane will again fly from its main Frankfurt airport is “close to zero.”
But it seemed that with the onset of the pandemic and the subsequent closure of countries, the A380 was completely written off by almost all air carriers. And this is understandable: over the past 5 & ndash; 7 years, the unrealistically large and voracious superjumbo has become a burden on most routes — it was incredibly difficult to load it, and four engines consumed one and a half times more kerosene than competitors. The focus was on the younger, fashionable and economical Airbus A350 and Boeing 777 and 787 models.
However, it turned out that the new aircraft is not so simple: it is not enough to sign a contract with the manufacturer and stand in line.< /p>
For example, Boeing told Lufthansa that the expected delivery of the 777 aircraft will be delayed as the manufacturer halted production of the new wide-body jet due to certification issues and weak demand.
Massive disruptions to delivery schedules have begun and many airlines , for example, Qantas and Singapore Airlines returned to the “heavenly monster” A380 to get out of the situation and meet the growing demand.
In fact, by the end of 2022, A380 flights will account for almost 60 percent of pre-COVID-19 volume, with 106 aircraft back in service, according to analytics firm Cirium. But in April 2020, there were only four operating Airbus A380s on the planet.
Of course, the A380 has its advantages — such as no existing aircraft.
It is generally accepted that the “superjumbo” — it is a technological masterpiece. The world's largest passenger jet has enough room for on-board showers and marble-lined cocktail bars — examples of the golden age of aviation glamor. This huge two-story building — with a wingspan the length of a football field — offers an unrivaled level of style and comfort, from economy to first class.
Lufthansa currently owns eight A380s out of a total of fourteen. The airline is now deciding how many of them it will return to service, and to which destinations the reactivated Airbus will fly.