Airbus A380

The Airbus A380 is the largest passenger jet ever built -- so huge that airports have to be redesigned to accommodate it. It can pack in more passengers and cargo than any other commercial airliner, yet its designers claim it will actually increase efficiency, use less fuel and generate less noise. The maximum certified carrying capacity is 853 passengers in an all-economy-class layout,Airbus lists the typical three-class layout as accommodating 525 passengers, with 10 first, 76 business, and 439 economy class seats. Overall, the A380’s two decks offer 50 per cent more floor surface than any other high-capacity aircraft.

The Airbus A380 is a double-deck, wide-body, four-engine jet airliner manufactured by the European corporation Airbus, a subsidiary ofEADS. It is the world's largest passenger airliner and, due to its size, many airports have had to upgrade their facilities to properly accommodate it. Initially named Airbus A3XX, the aircraft was designed to challenge Boeing's monopoly in the large-aircraft market; the A380 made its first flight on 27 April 2005 and began commercial service in October 2007 with Singapore Airlines.

The A380's upper deck extends along the entire length of the fuselage, with a width equivalent to a wide-body aircraft. This allows for an A380-800's cabin with 478 square metres (5,145.1 sq ft) of floor space; 49% more floor space than the next-largest airliner, the Boeing 747-400 with 321 square metres (3,455.2 sq ft), and provides seating for 525 people in a typical three-class configuration or up to 853 people in all-economy class configurations. The A380-800 has a design range of 15,400 kilometres (8,300 nmi; 9,600 mi), sufficient to fly from New York to Hong Kong, and a cruising speed of Mach 0.85 (about 900 km/h or 560 mph at cruising altitude).



 The A380 was initially offered in two models. The A380-800 original configuration carried 555 passengers in a three-class configuration or 853 passengers (538 on the main deck and 315 on the upper deck) in a single-class economy configuration. In May 2007 Airbus began marketing a configuration with 30 fewer passengers, (525 total in three classes), traded for 370 km (200 nmi) more range, to better reflect trends in premium class accommodation. The design range for the −800 model is 15,400 km (8,300 nmi); capable of flying from Hong Kong to New York or from Sydney to Istanbul non-stop. The second model, the A380F freighter, would carry 150 tonnes of cargo 10,400 km (5,600 nmi). The freighter development was put on hold as Airbus prioritised the passenger version and all cargo orders were cancelled. Future variants may include an A380-900 stretch seating about 656 passengers (or up to 960 passengers in an all economy configuration) and an extended-range version with the same passenger capacity as the A380-800.

As of November 2012 there had been 262 firm orders for the A380, of which 92 have been delivered. The largest order, for 90 aircraft, was from Emirates.