if you build it they will come....... maybe

SEA and ATL has already announced landing the A380 in anything other than an emergency would require major construction. runways would need widening and terminals would need upgrades to load and unload the aircraft. they are not willing to do it. even if they did make neccessary changes, airports might need to hold back other airport traffic to let the monster taxi in.

the A380 although not much longer than the 747 it has a 261-foot wingspan. that's 50 feet wider than the 747 and wider than many runways and taxiways were built for. this airplane can weigh 30 percent more than the biggest 747. the weight alone could damage runways and collapse tunnels. let's not discuss terminal access.

and 550 pax... forget it. this plane will hold 800+ passengers, and that's how many they will cram in. how many support people would be needed for this thing to load. these are my guesses... (16) flight attendants, (6) gate personell, (10) baggage handlers, (4) maintenance, (4) ground, and (8) custodial crews. what do all these employees do for hours while they wait for the next one to land.

i think if there was a big demand for giant airplanes boeing would have sold more 747's. for my money (and sanity) i want to get in the aircraft in my city and get out in the destination city. load and unload in as little time as possible. (imagine waiting for your luggage around a carousel with 800 other people) skip the hub and spoke thing,

i don't think most airports will spend millions of dollars for a couple of flights a day. there isn't enough demand right now to justify the cost and effort to rebuild. time will tell, but bigger isn't always better.

ps - they'll make great freighters.