A380

Korean Air Has Luxurious Plans For The A380

Filed under: Wings

Korean Air has announced what it plans to do with its double-decker Airbus A380 plane. The airline plans to turn the entire upper deck of an Airbus A380 into a luxurious space for business class passengers with lie-flat seats. When the A380 has its first flight next May it will offer just 407 seats total, the lowest number of any commercial A380 to date. There will be room for 94 passengers on the upper deck, 301 economy seats and 12 first class suites in the nose of the plane. The company has ordered at total of 10 planes. The second, third and fourth planes are set to arrive in July or August.

Tags: a380, airbus a380, korean air

Emirates Orders 32 More Airbus A380s

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Wings

Airlines in the U.S. seem to having their troubles but Emirates, the largest Arab carrier, is growing at an astounding rate. At the Berlin Air Show the company announced that it has ordered 32 A380s from Airbus for $11.5 billion. That's in addition to the previously ordered 58 A380s to make a massive fleet of the doubledecker aircraft. In the past two years Emirates has put 10 A380s into operation to serve eight destinations.The company had a record profit increase of 248 percent in the last fiscal year and has said it could hit $1 billion in profits this year.

Tags: a380, A380 superjumbo, Airbus, AirbusA380, emirates

First Emirates A380 Lands In Dubai

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Wings

Of the various things that the first of Emirates' 58 Airbus A380s might be known for, the shower is perhaps the most dramatic. The doubledecker jet landed at Dubai international airport this week in grand style. His Highness Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al-Maktoum, Chairman and Chief Executive of Emirates Airline and Group, was on board with a delegation of senior Emirates executives that flew in from Hamburg on the aircraft. Gulf News has a first hand account from a journalist on board.

Emirates' first A380 has 489 seats: 14 in first class suites, 76 in business and 399 in economy. The first class passengers on Emirates A380 will be the only ones with access to the shower. Emirates' first A380 commercial service is scheduled for 1 August and will operate between Dubai and New York.

[Thanks, Ben]

Gallery: Emirates A380

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Tags: a380, dubai, emirates

Ugandan Tycoon Orders the Second Private Airbus A380

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Wings

The second potential owner of a private Airbus A380 doubledecker jet has been revealed. The first jet belongs to Saudi Arabian Prince Al Waleed Bin Talal and the second jet will go to Michael Ezra. Never heard of him? I hadn't either. Michael Ezra is a tycoon said to be the richest man in Uganda. He is just 34 and is known as a "sports philanthropist" who has supported Uganda's sports teams and once made a move to buy the Leeds United soccer team. The Daily Monitor has reported that he is paying $260 million for a the Airbus A380 and that his plane will be available in 2010. He could spend another $150 million for the custom designed interior. Preliminary plans for his plane include an office, full satellite communication equipment, a conference room for 12 persons, a karaoke room, a movie room, a gymnasium, medical center four self-contained VIP bedrooms, another four executive bedrooms, as well as a spa.The lower deck of the plane will including living quarters for flight attendants and room for three cars. Ezra's plane will likely be registered in Dubai where he does most of his business. This isn't Ezra's first spendy maneuver in 2006 he spent $250,000 in Dubai for an exclusive Centennial Mont Blanc watch as part of was part of an Emirates charity promotion to help disadvantaged children of the world (a picture of Ezra with the watch is here).

UPDATE: Michael Ezra's website is here. No mention of the plane on there.

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Tags: a380, airbus, michael ezra, private jet, PrivateJet, uganda

Will The Airbus A380 Be Turned Into A Flying Casino

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Wings

This just might be the most outlandish Airbus A380 story yet. Aero-News Network reports that there is interesting in turning the doubledecker plane into a flying casino. According to the article, the planemaker mentioned onboard gaming as a possibility when the plane first came out but airlines weren't really interested because gaming areas would take up valuable space where they could put more passengers. Now Airbus reports that they have had interest from customers (presumably not airlines) who are interested in creating flying casinos. One of the major areas of interest for these planes has been from Asia, where gambling is booming. The Chinese territory of Macau is quickly overtaking Las Vegas as the world's top gambling destination. Airbus has said that the first A380 flying casino could enter service in 2012.

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Tags: a380, airbus, casino, doubledecker plane

Private Airbus A380 To Get A Gold Paint Job

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Wings, Celebrity Shopping

Prince Al-Waleed bin Talal bin Abdul Aziz al-Saud the soon-to-be owner of the first private Airbus A380 is sparing no expense to make his doubledecker toy the most fabulously extravagant jet on the planet. He spent over $300 million on the plane and is currently spending more than half that much money on customizing the jet. As we've mentioned before on this site, the jet will have a whirlpool bath and sauna, a dining room paneled in marble, a gym and a desert-themed fiber-optic mural. The most incredible touch might just be the approximately $58 million he is spending to have the plane painted in gold leaf on the outside. It not only sounds luxurious it also sounds a little dangerous if the sun bounces off it. The plane will be ready in two years, until then, the prince will have to content himself with his current ride, his own 747 jumbo jet.

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Tags: a380, airbus, expire-images:2009-2-12, jumbo jet, prince al-waleed, PrinceAl-waleed, sheikh

Could the Airbus A380 Get Even Bigger?

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Wings

The Airbus 380 is barely into its official reign as the ruler of the skies and Airbus is already planning a bigger model. Airbus says that the A380-900 would be able to carry as many as 900 passengers in a single-class configuration. The current configuration seats 500 to 800 depending on the configuration. Development on the supersized version of the already supersized jet would start in 2010, after the A380 reaches full production.

Of course, Emirates is already getting their deep pockets ready to buy this plane too. Their plan is to likely outfit the plane with around 750 seats so that it would have both premium and first-class accommodations for higher-paying passengers. There is also the possibility that other carriers could go in the opposite direction, putting as many as 1,000 seats on the plane. The new plane will likely be ready in 2015.

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Tags: a380, airbus, airplane, expire-images:2008-11-18, jet, jumbo jet

Saudi Prince Is the Owner of the First Private A380

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Wings, Celebrity Shopping

Ever since I heard about the Airbus A380, I knew it would make someone one very luxurious private plane. We've seen pictures of the proposed interior before but until now we didn't have owner to put with all that luxury. A while ago it was rumored that Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich was the owner but Airbus has announced that Saudi billionaire Prince Alwaleed bin Talal is the first private buyer of an A380. Prince Alwaleed's Flying Palace will not be his first plane, he already owns a Boeing 747-400. A gallery of the desert-themed designs for the A380 done by Edese Doret can be found here.

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Tags: a380, airbus, jet, prince alwaleed bin Talai, private plane, PrivatePlane

Emirates Airlines Stocks Up On Planes

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Wings

I've often written about the luxurious Emirates Airlines which operates out of Dubai, now they are expanding at a rapid rate with the announcement of the largest aircraft commitment made by any airline at one time. Fueled by high oil prices and a rapidly booming tourism industries, Emirates has been booming which shows in a $34.9 billion deal that includes orders from both Airbus and Boeing. The deal was announced at the Dubai Airshow and will include 120 Airbus A350s, 11 A380s, and 12 Boeing 777-300Ers. Emirates also comfirmed that they still want the eight A380s they ordered earlier this year and ordered three more bringing their total order of A380s to 58. Their total orders now number 246 aircraft worth a total of over $60 billion dollars.

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Tags: a380, airbus, airlines, boeing, dubai, emirates, middle east

Keep your Hands To Yourself On the Airbus A380

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Wings

It would seem that the Airbus A380 doubledecker jumbo jet, with its 12 first-class cabins with double beds would be built for romantic activity but Singapore Airlines, the first operator of the new Airbus A380, is intent on banning the nookie. Reuters reports that the carrier will ask passengers to refrain from doing what might come naturally in this romantic setting. The cabins are not sound proofed and as you can see in the picture above, they are not completely sealed off. The airline does not want to cause offense to other customers or the crew. Considering how many people join the mile-high club under far less comfortable conditions, I wonder how big a deterrent a simple request is going to be. I suspect that as long as the participants are quiet and discreet, there will still be quite a bit of action taking place in those first-class suites.

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Tags: a380, airbus, expire-images:2008-11-1, mile high club, singapore airlines

Did Abramovich Splash Out For An A380?

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Wings, Celebrity Shopping

And you thought a ticket for the first ride on an Airbus A380 was expensive, how would you like to have the bank account of the man rumored to have bought one? When it comes to the extravagances of Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich I'd be prepared to believe almost anything. After all, the multiple-yacht-owning soccer team owner is one of the world's flashiest spenders. But did he spend $300 million to buy the first Airbus A380 for personal use? I've seen a flurry of reports saying that the Chukotka governor and Chelsea FC owner bought the plane to add to his fleet which includes a Boeing-767 and a Boeing-737. A spokesperson for Abramovich says the story is not true. Airbus has neither confirmed nor denied the report yet.

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Tags: a380, airbus a380, jumbo jet, private jet, private plane, roman abramovich

Airbus A380 Luxury Plane Tickets Sell for $100,000

by Rigel Celeste (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Wings

You've been reading about it, you've been hearing about it, and now it's finally happened: those two tickets up for auction for a luxury suite (plus all kinds of other goodies) on the maiden voyage of the Singapore Airlines Airbus A380 have finally sold -- for $100,000. That sounds like a lot of money to pay for a flight from Singapore to Sydney, but of course it's on an Airbus, it includes a lot of other perks, and that's actually a lot less than what the airline was hoping to get for charity (the "Buy it now" was $380,000). What a bargain!

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Tags: 380, A380, airbus, airfare, airline, airlines, auction, bid, bidding, charity, doubledecker jet, DoubledeckerJet, flight, fly, jet, most expensive, MostExpensive, plane, singapore, singapore airlines, SingaporeAirlines, ticket, tickets, wings

Singapore Airlines A380 Tickets Up For Bid

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Wings, Auctions, Charity

As I mentioned in July, Singapore Airlines, the first commercial airline to take delivery of the Airbus A380 jumbo jet, is auctioning off seats on their first flight for charity. Tickets on the first flight, between Singapore and Sydney on October 25, are now available on eBay. There are a variety of packages available but the most luxurious is a package to fly in the Singapore Airlines Suites. The package includes two first class round trip tickets to Singapore, BMW 7 Series limousine transfers, an invite to the breakfast send-off party of the world's first A380 commercial flight, commemorative premium goodie bags, two nights' complimentary accommodation in Singapore, one night complimentary accommodation in Sydney, a trip to Toulouse, France, on October 15 for the delivery of the plane, and a model of the plane. The buy-it-now price is $380,000.

[via The Telegraph]

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Tags: a380, airbus 380, singapore airlines

Singapore Airlines To Auction Off Seats On The A380

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Wings, Auctions, Charity

As I've mentioned in the past, Singapore Airlines is the first commercial airline to get their hands on an Airbus A380. They have now announced that they will be auctioning off seats on the first commercial flight of the A380 between Singapore and Sydney. Tickets for the first flight of this doubledecker jet will be offered on eBay, with the proceeds going to Singapore's Community Chest, Sydney Children's Hospital, Randwich, The Children's Hospital at Westmead and Doctors Without Borders. Exxon Mobil Aviation will donate the fuel for the flight.

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Tags: a380, airbus, airplane, charity, doubledecker jet, jet, singapore airlines, SingaporeAirlines

The First Customer-Painted Airbus A380

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Wings

The first customer-painted Airbus A380 has been revealed. Singapore Airlines has the honor of being the first to splash their logo on the ultimate doubledecker jumbo jet. It took 21 days for 100 workers in four shifts to polish and paint the blue and gold Singapore Airlines logo and the name "Singapore Airlines" across the massive plane. The job also took over 580 gallons of paint. Airbus is trying to minimize the ecological damage from the massive project, electrostatic pistols are used to minimize paint mist and used air is cleaned and washed through a multi-stage cleaning process. Singapore Airline will receive the aircraft in October.

[via Asia Travel Tips]

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Tags: a380, airbus, airline, aviation, jumbo jet

A380

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