Superjumbos Have Flown Over 1,600 Revenue Flights Since October 2007

Saturday was a momentous day for European planemaker Airbus, which celebrated the first anniversary of the A380 superjumbo's entry into service.

As ANN reported, the first A380 was handed over to Singapore Airlines on October 15, 2007. The aircraft entered service 10 days later, with a special charity flight between Singapore and Sydney.

Since then, Airbus has also delivered A380s to Emirates Airline and Qantas Airways. A total of nine aircraft have been delivered to date, with six in operation with Singapore Airlines, one with Qantas and two with Emirates (the latter received its second plane Friday.)

To date, more than 700,000 passengers have flown on the world's first full double-deck aircraft, which is now connecting four continents and flying on seven major international routes. A380s in service link Singapore with Sydney, London and Tokyo, Dubai with New York, and Sydney and Melbourne with Los Angeles.

While operators did experience some early teething problems with their aircraft, Airbus notes the in-service fleet has recorded more than 15,000 revenue flight hours in more than 1,600 commercial flights... "with a very high level of in-service reliability, setting new benchmarks in terms of performance, eco-efficiency and low operating costs."

Airbus adds real-world experience shows the A380 consumes 20 percent less fuel per seat than the Boeing 747-400, representing the lowest fuel burn of any large aircraft to date.

"Today is a special anniversary for Airbus," said Airbus President and CEO Tom Enders. "It shows that with perseverance, hard work and close collaboration with airlines the A380 meets all its promised performance objectives. It brings real benefits to our customers as the aircraft's efficiency and dispatch reliability is really unprecedented."

FMI: www.airbus.com, www.singaporeairlines.com, www.qantas.com, www.emirates.com