As Airbus gradually brings production of the Airbus A380 to a close, deliveries of the giant of the skies have reduced, falling to just four in 2020. Now, only a handful of unfulfilled aircraft remains two years after Airbus cut the program. All of these will go to UAE carrier Emirates.
While undoubtedly a magnificent engineering feat, the Airbus A380 is unfortunately not an aircraft suited to its time. This is shown by Airbus pulling the plug on the program a full year before the COVID-19 pandemic kicked off. However, recent events have only accelerated the demise of the type.
Four aircraft delivered in 2020
In total, Airbus delivered four A380s in 2020 to two different customers. Japanese airline All Nippon Airways took delivery of the first, while Emirates took delivery of the other three. Let’s take a look at the breakdown,
JA383A
JA383A is the registration of ANA’s 3rd of three Airbus A380 orders. The aircraft was officially delivered to ANA on October 30th, 2020. This means it was the only aircraft delivered in Q3. However, the aircraft is yet to be flown to Japan. The delivery has only taken place on paper, with the giant orange turtle-faced plane remaining in its manufacturer’s care.
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A6-EVL
A6-EVL was one of three Airbus A380s that were delivered to UAE giant Emirates. The airline took all deliveries in December, with EVL flying out to Dubai on December 4th. The aircraft has been put straight to good use, completing around 400 flight hours in its first two months across 70 flights. According to RadarBox.com, the plane has covered some 166,033 nautical miles. It flew more rotations to London than any other destination with 27 trips.
A6-EVM
A6-EVM was the second A380 to be delivered to Emirates last year, flying to the UAE carrier on December 11th. Like its sister EVL, the aircraft was also put straight to good use, with London Heathrow being one of its first destinations. Unfortunately, flight tracking websites have a hard time following this aircraft, presumably due to a transponder issue, so it’s not possible to get detailed utilization statistics.
A6-EVN
Last but not least, to join the Emirates fleet was A6-EVN on December 23rd. This aircraft was the first to feature Emirate’s brand new premium economy cabin, in addition to a cabin refresh elsewhere on the plane. Emirates was exclusively flying the aircraft to London until it received a ban due to the UAE being placed onto the UK’s red-list. Since then, it has mainly been flying to Paris. According to RadarBox.com, it has so far clocked 370 flight hours over 58 flights, equating to 156,559 nautical miles.
Five aircraft left
Airbus has just five Airbus A380s left to deliver, all bound for Emirates. In December, Emirates President Tim Clark revealed that the airline would take two of these aircraft this year, with the final three coming in 2020. This means that this year will be the lowest for A380 deliveries, apart from 2007, the first year, when just one A380 was delivered.
Are you pleased to see that Airbus A380s are still being delivered? Let us know what you think and why in the comments!
