dkjb3t4

I find it rather sad because most of the newer first class products in the A380 look like the best F products.

ryanthekiwi

Can someone explain the quote from Emirates in the article?

"We are on the hook for this plane," said Emirates President Tim Clark. "I get pretty miffed when we have put so much at stake," he told Reuters.

Why would they be upset if they've already taken delivery of their a/c.

will2288

True, but with the exception of showers and the residence, there isn't much reason why most of the features of the F cabin can't be put into a 777, etc.

davem4

Didn't they build a multi billion dollar new terminal dedicated to A380's?

Either way, I'm glad for the shift. Point to point is great, and the 380-800 was too short (looked bad).

the4aces

Maybe this will make maintenance cost more?

bhrubin

They still need to fill the back of the plane. We may love fly F, but it's an awfully big plane to fill to pay for the fuel and having those lovely F suites and shower.

the4aces

Not to mention it takes awhile to board/deboard it.

tsz

I would think because this means down the road/in the long run, they're gonna have to find something else to replace the A380s (and a comparable product doesn't really exist...at least not yet).

Ocn Vw 1K

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Ocn Vw 1K, Moderator, TravelBuzz.

jridge

There's minimal new content in the referenced CNN article - the lack of profitability has been known for a long time, and Airbus have been saying they will need to make a decision about future production "soon", "in the short-medium term", "by the end of the year" etc. for a while now.

Of course Emirates are ticked off... they (and the other Gulf carriers) rely on trunk routes more than anyone else. However, Emirates are also pushing for new variants and modifications to the A380, which is where Airbus are balking.

I find the NY Times article from August quite interesting.

zarkov505

You're in for a treat.

I rode a 787 from BKK to NRT this past weekend.

The electrochromic windows are VERY nice, and VERY effective at darkening the cabin.

The cabin is QUIET, significantly more so than 767 or 777.

I didn't notice the thing that surprised me the most until it slapped me in the face. The cabin on the 787 is designed to be pressurized to a much lower equivalent altitude (higher internal pressure), and JAL did it. It makes for a much more comfortable ride. I didn't notice it, or connect it up, until I noticed that my favorite airline physics experiment was failing. (Open a plastic water bottle at cruise altitude. Drink about half the water. Seal the bottle. Look at it after landing. It will be about half-crushed, because of the lower pressurization at altitude. I do this on just about every flight, just for the fun of it. Except on the 787, it didn't crush!)

I was a bit disappointed in one thing. I was in an aisle seat, and there didn't appear to be an armrest release button anywhere, to let me put the aisle armrest up. (I just may not have found it.) A JAL flight attendant showed it to me on their 767s a year or two ago, and it makes it a LOT easier to get in and out of the seat.

I was a bit surprised on one thing. The airplane actually seemed smaller than I expected it to be.

joshwex90

You're such a nerd. I love it!

Steve M

EK does have showers in F in some of their 777's.

eternaltransit

EK like to have a very young fleet (I think the average age is around 6 years at the moment) - with Airbus not supporting the A380, EK might have a problem with values in the secondary market causing them to take a bigger than expected write down in the asset value when it comes to their scheduled replacement. Later A380s operated by EK have shifted this problem onto lessors and investors though, but it's still going to be a hit for their balance sheet.

Unfortunately for EK, they are probably the only operator with the cost base and route network to make the plane actually regularly profitable - whether Airbus are going to build a plane just for one customer...well...!

LondonElite

Because the future resale value of the plane will be much less if it's taken out of production. Lease rates to other airlines will be lower. And maintenance will be higher. If you've made a commitment to the aircraft then your entire infrastructure, from training to terminals, will be, to an extent, built around it.