Thread: 10 years on, Qantas A380 faces problems, costs a fortune in fuel.

Some of the arguments don't really hold up all that well - Qantas' primary hub is Sydney, and it is very definitely slot limited, making a good argument for the A380. And competing on product can be very significant, especially on Qantas' ultra-long haul routes.

Wonder what Boeing paid him for this?

While I think the A380 has its place in the mix, it's pretty obvious from orders of the Dreamliner and how efficient and comfortable they are that almost no airline will continue to buy the A380 going forward, but I don't think that means scrapping them just yet...

Yes. And will the refurbishment of the A380s include new more efficient engines?

That will be interesting to see, although I'm not sure if Rolls Royce have changed the design of them much since production began and I believe they are the only ones making an engine with suitable specs for the A380.

The history of turbine engines is one of continuous improvement. It would be rather surprising if they cannot come up with an improved version - either more power or more fuel efficient. Any small improvement in either area would make a significant improvement on the ultra-long routes, enabling either takeoff with a bit more payload or longer range or simply more payload for similar range - I understand the fuel load on these flights means that the revenue payload is significantly reduced.

And there is no doubt that passengers, by and large, like the long hops - who wants to spend time in LAX if heading for Texas, for example? I remember when all US flights meant a stop in Honolulu, or Nandi, or Papeete at the very least. These days nobody stops at these places unless they want to!

For that matter I remember when flights westbound from Sydney to Perth required stops at Adelaide and Ceduna - and Forrest if the jetstream was very strong!

Originally Posted by Homestar

Wonder what Boeing paid him for this?

While I think the A380 has its place in the mix, it's pretty obvious from orders of the Dreamliner and how efficient and comfortable they are that almost no airline will continue to buy the A380 going forward, but I don't think that means scrapping them just yet...

Seems so, if this correct. I recently read about a further bunch for Emirates. Mind you, cancellations appear rife.

List of Airbus A380 orders and deliveries - Wikipedia


https://www.forbes.com/sites/michael.../#76a1ac7c2807

The A380 is affectionately known by insiders as the ‘A180’ such is its reliability, or lack thereof.
Things like the FAA’s 330 minute EDTO approval of some twin engined jets (including B787) makes it hard for manufacturers to justify 4 engines on an aeroplane these days.
That’s why we’re seeing more of twins on the trans-Pacific routes, etc.
And in the unlikely event of a diversion, the more popular twin-engined aeroplanes have a comparatively huge number of airports at which they can land.
It costs a fortune to R&D engine improvements in order to gain more thrust.
I reckon Rolls Royce is spending most of its R&D just trying to make the Trent 900 more reliable

Its interesting, because as a passenger I look for the A380 over the Boeing because the newer ones are quieter, they have more seating room and better seats and they're a smoother flight.