British Airways (BA) has become the tenth operator to receive Airbus A380 jumbo after taking delivery of the first of 12 aircraft on ...
British Airways (BA) has become the tenth operator to receive Airbus A380 jumbo after taking delivery of the first of 12 aircraft on order. BA is the first UK operator of the A380 and will start to deploy its new flagship aircraft on routes from London Heathrow to Los Angeles and Hong Kong.
After a handover ceremony at Airbus’ delivery centre in Toulouse with Keith Williams, British Airways CEO, Eric Schulz, Roll-Royce President Civil Large Engines, Fabrice Brégier, Airbus President and CEO and other senior executives, BA’s first A380 were flown to the UK carrier’s home base at London Heathrow.
The A380 joins British Airways’ substantial Airbus fleet, with the carrier currently operating an inventory of more than 110 single-aisle A320 Family aircraft.
British Airways is scheduled to receive two more A380s this year – its second in September, and the third in October. The carrier is due to have all of the ordered A380 jetliners in its inventory by the end of 2016.
All BA’s A380s will be powered by Rolls-Royce Trent 900 engines. Airbus currently has 262 firm orders for the A380, from 20 customers.
The A380 is capable of flying 8,500 nautical miles or 15,700 kilometres non-stop, carrying more people at lower cost and withless impact on the environment. The spacious, quiet cabin and smooth ride have made the A380 a firm favourite with both airlines and passengers, resulting in higher load factors wherever it flies. The A380 also provides vital extra passenger capacity without increasing the number of flights, and is therefore part of the solution for sustainable growth at congested airports.
To date, 40 million passengers have already enjoyed the unique experience of flying on board an A380. Every five minutes, an A380 either takes off or lands at one of the 30 airports where it operates today and the network is constantly growing.
