Airbus and Emirates mark a milestone in aviation history
AIRBUS has delivered its 100th A380 to the United Arab Emirates-based airline Emirates.
The wings of the double-decker jet are made at the 6,000 worker wing assembly plant at Broughton, north Wales.
The delivery of the 100th A380 aircraft to the airline took place at a special ceremony with Airbus at the manufacturer’s delivery centre in Hamburg.
His Highness Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al-Maktoum, Emirates’ chairman and chief executive, said: “This is a tremendous moment for Emirates, for Airbus and for our many partners involved in the A380 programme. There is no doubt that the A380 has had a big positive impact on aerospace manufacturing and the broader aviation industry, supporting hundreds of thousands of jobs and stimulating innovation and new product development in many related areas such as ground handling, catering, airport facilities and cabin products, to name a few.
“Importantly, the A380 also brought the flying experience for our customers to the next level. The aircraft itself is a showpiece of engineering. It is the world’s largest commercial passenger jet but it is quiet and efficient, and at Emirates we’ve utilised the onboard real estate to redefine the thinking around in-flight products and experience. Our flight crew love to fly it and our customers love to fly in it.
“For Emirates, the A380 has been a success. We’ve been able to utilise it at slot-constrained airports, as well as at regional and ‘secondary’ airports where we have grown passenger demand. Each time we deploy an A380 on to a route, it typically stimulates further traffic and demand as travellers are attracted by our flagship A380 experience.
“We remain committed to the programme and will work closely with Airbus and our partners to continually enhance our A380 product as we look ahead to receiving our remaining 42 aircraft on order.”