IATA 388ICAO A388

Airbus A380-800

Airbus

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The world's largest commercial double-deck wide-body airliner.

First flight

2005

Category

Wide-body jet

Seating

555 (typical three-class); up to 853 (all-economy)

Range

15,200 km

Engines

Four turbofans; Engine Alliance GP7200 or Rolls-Royce Trent 970/972

Status

In service

The Airbus A380-800 is a double-deck, wide-body, four-engine jet airliner manufactured by Airbus. It is the world's largest passenger aircraft, capable of carrying over 500 passengers in a typical two-class configuration or up to 853 in an all-economy layout. It entered commercial service with Singapore Airlines in October 2007. The A380 was designed to challenge Boeing's dominance in the long-haul, high-density market and to serve busy hub airports by moving large numbers of passengers efficiently. It features a full-length double-deck fuselage, advanced composite materials making up approximately 25% of its airframe, and sophisticated fly-by-wire flight controls. Despite its technical achievements, the A380 faced commercial difficulties due to shifting airline preferences toward smaller, more fuel-efficient twin-engine aircraft. Airbus announced in February 2019 that production would cease, with the final delivery occurring in 2021. The type remains in service with a number of major carriers.

Notable operators

Major operators include Emirates, Singapore Airlines, Qantas, British Airways, Lufthansa, Air France, Qatar Airways, and Korean Air.

Notable facts

›First flight took place on 27 April 2005 from Toulouse, France.
›The A380 is the world's largest commercial passenger aircraft by capacity.
›Production ended in 2021 after Airbus received insufficient orders to sustain the program.
›Emirates is by far the largest operator, having ordered over 100 aircraft.
›The aircraft features a cabin width of approximately 6.5 metres on each deck.