The A380, originally dubbed the A3XX, is the most radical change to the commercial airliner market since the Boeing 747-400 which first appeared in the 1970’s and has dominated the large aircraft market ever since. As the world’s largest commercial aircraft, the A380 stands out from the rest with its distinct feature of a double deck, an increase of 49% from of it’s closest competitor - the 747-400. Boasting a near 80 meter wingspan, the A380’s size is certainly impressive, however, over the course of the past 2 decades, the A380 has had a very storied history with many pitfalls amongst it’s various triumphs.

With such a large aircraft, there are many inherent problems that have resulted in a project that, at times, was 20 months behind schedule and $1.75 billion out of budget. The unique size of the aircraft also presented many logistical problems regarding what kind of infrastructure is needed from airport terminals to manufacturing factories located in places from France to Wales and how those parts are to be transferred. These many issues caused a series of delays, however, ultimately the A380 reached the sky and is quickly becoming the most popular aircraft yet.

Airline A380 Orders and Received

262Total ORDERS

87delivered

The A380 project has been plagued by a series of setbacks particularly within production. The sheer size and enormity of not only the planes, but also the individual components, has led to greater difficulty in completing orders. New warehouses, factories and systems for transporting parts from different countries needed to be created as previous infrastructure was insufficient.

As a result, the project has seen numerous delays with setbacks totaling over 22 months. Less than 50% of the total orders have been fulfilled with some airlines yet to receive their first aircraft. Manufacturing levels have increased significantly but they are still fighting to keep up with demand for the aircraft so as to not lose business to the Boeing Dreamliner.

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DAI 523 - Information Design 1Professor Pino TroguAssignment 04: RelationshipsLuke Marsden - November 2012

A3XX TALKS BEGIN

Airbus begins talks with major international carriers about requirements for a super-large passenger aircraft. Its member partners work on individual schemes eventually leading to the A3XX project.

jan: joint research with Boeing

Rival Boeing reveals it has begun studies into a "very large" commercial aircraft - with the four Airbus partners - Aerospatiale, Daimler-Benz Aerospace Airbus, Construcciones Aeronauticas and British Aerospace.

jun: a3XX project begins

After Boeing opts instead for smaller "jumbos", Airbus partners set up an A3XX team to focus on the "super-jumbo" project.

new engines necessary

Airbus Large Aircraft Division formed, and project chiefs opt for specially designed engines rather than adapting existing types to cope with the size of the new aircraft.

a3XX launches

Commercial launch of the A3XX, later to become the A380.

Airbus becomes one

Airbus consortium formally becomes a single integrated company, comprising the four partners from France, Germany, Spain and the UK.

Manufacture begins

Work begins on manufacturing key components, including the wings in Filton, near Bristol, and at Broughton, north Wales.

Feb: first engines

delivered

The first engines are delivered by Rolls-Royce to the Airbus factory in Toulouse, France.

May: assembling the giant

The first wings roll off the production line in north Wales and assembly begins in the giant £240m factory in France.

DEC: budget blown

Airbus owner EADS reveals the project is £1bn (1.45bn euros) over budget, costing more than £8.4bn (12bn euros).

18 Jan: the a380 debuts

After Airbus and Boeing agree to talks to resolve their row over unfair subsidies, Airbus finally unveils the A380 to the media and dignitaries in a reveal at Toulouse, France.

27 APR: maiden flight

A380 makes its maiden flight in Toulouse, France flying for 4 hours. This is followed by a year of flight-testing and certification-pro-gramme work delaying it’s delivery.

Jun: first delay

Airbus announces that the plane's delivery schedule will slip by six months.

Mar: a380 passes its test

The A380 passes a key evacuation test, with 850 passengers & 20 crew managing to exit within 80 seconds, with half the exits blocked.

Jul: further delays

The A380 suffers another production delay, with Airbus predicting a delay of another six to seven months.

03 Oct: yet more delays

A one year delay announced. The first A380 will now go into service 20 months later than originally planned. Airbus will not see an operating profit on the A380 until 2010.

15 Oct: 1st a380 enters service

The first A380 for commercial service is delivered to Singapore Airlines.

Jul: a new rival

Boeing unveils it’s hot-selling 787 Dreamliner, the new rival to the A380 despite having a single deck.

25 Oct 2007: first commercial flight

Singapore Airlines’ A380 makes its first commercial flight from Singapore to Sydney.

18 Mar: first flight to Europe

A Singapore Airlines A380 leaves Singapore for London - in the A380's first commercial flight to Europe.

29 APR: Review of production

Major reviews of production plans to meet new delivery targets which are now almost 2 years behind schedule. Production problems in wiring have been a main cause.

28 Jul: second carrier receives

Emirates becomes only the second carrier to receive an A380, the first of 58 it’s ordered.

03 FEB: 200 sold

Korean Air orders two more A380’s bringing sales to 200.

31 Mar: tyres burst

A Qantas A380 bursts two tyres while landing at Sydney creating sparks and flames.

27 sep: engine failure

A Singapore Airlines A380 is forced to turn back to Paris after one of its four Rolls-Royce engines failed.

04 jun: 30th a380 delivered

Airbus delivers its 30th A380, the 7th so far in 2010 hoping to deliver at least 20 in total during 2010.

04 Nov: another engine failure

Qantas & Singapore Airlines suspend flights of their A380’s after a severe engine failure forces an emergency landing in Singapore.

Feb 2009: magic million

Singapore Airlines flys the 1,000,000th passenger.

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80THE MAKING OF A GIANT

AIRBUS A380

Sourceswww.airbus.comhttp://in.reuters.com

Ordered

Delivered

72.7Meters long

70.7Meters long

79.8mWingspan

64.4mWingspan

525-853Seating capacity

416-660Seating capacity

47CentimeterSeat width

43.6CentimeterSeat width

$360-390MPurchase price per aircraft

$228-260MPurchase price per aircraft

Airbus A380-800 Boeing 747-400

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