BA's 747-200's had Y upstairs - IB still fly 742's and they have First upstairs.
Eva Air have both F and J on the upper deck of their 747-400's. NW used to F upstairs on their 742's?

If you like the upper deck of the 747-400, then you would LOVE the 742. It's very, very spacious and quiet with a nice little standing around area forward to the spiral stair.

I am guessing that a lot of airlines don't have their first class on the upper deck because first class flyers with disabilities would have difficulty getting up the stairs, especially the old spiral staircases on some of the 747-100s and -200s. I bet a good number of paying first class people are older and less able to climb stairs than your average 40 year old businessperson.

At the risk of hijacking my own thread , what will access to the upper deck of A380 be? Stairs/Elevator? Upper Deck Jetways? (ouch for the airports it they need multi level Jetways, i would think)

Interesting posts about the history of the 74 upper deck. Thanks.

Well, it's ouch time for the airports then, because Airbus do indeed envisage multi-level boarding, with F and C on the upper deck and Y on the lower. This is how some Asian airports seem to board 747-400s, with two jetways, albeit both to the main deck. Part of the rationale behind the A380 double deck (as opposed to extra wide or extra long) was to segregate the premium class boarding from the masses.

Maybe it's time to buy stocks in the jetway manufacturers again.

Should make for some interesting arrivals at Heathrow Terminal 4 with all those "Bus stands" remote from the terminal.

[quote]<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">Originally posted by WHBM:

Quote:

Originally posted by rufus102:

Well, it's ouch time for the airports then, because Airbus do indeed envisage multi-level boarding, with F and C on the upper deck and Y on the lower. This is how some Asian airports seem to board 747-400s, with two jetways, albeit both to the main deck. Part of the rationale behind the A380 double deck (as opposed to extra wide or extra long) was to segregate the premium class boarding from the masses.
.

United uses dual jetways even in the U.S. for its 747s and 777s. One jetway is for First/Business/Elite and the other for everyone else.

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"I just wanna wish you good luck, we're all counting on you"
-Dr. Rumack

Correct. And so it should be too.



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Try and make it down to SYD for "OZ FEST 2004" - May 21-23

~ Glen ~ sipping bubbly from UA 747-400 exit row 15A near you SOON!

This is how JL does it as well. JL's 747's I've flown on all had Y in the upper deck. It's not so bad though. Even in coach you can still get the benefit of much better pax/lav ratio, generally quieter surroundings, and with emergency exit goodness if you just bother to ask. Let the frail snobs have their silly nose area and join me for a drink in the bubble. The age of the coach warrior is upon us!

I could be wrong, but it would appear at the moment that the comments above were born between two cheeks in a burst of hot gas.

In a simple attempt to avoid repeating this mistake, I took all of 30 seconds to look up the following information as it stands of now. Please take a look for yourself if interested...

http://www.airbus.com/product/a380_cabin_layouts.asp
http://www.airliners.net/info/stats.main?id=29

The cabin floorplans clearly show F and Y on the lower deck and C & Y on the upper deck for a standard three-class configuration. Other configurations could allow for ~ 800 seats in a Y-only plan as well.

According to Airbus' little blurb about optional executive areas, they too would appear on the lower deck. It's pasted here...

You can get far more technical information from a variety of sources if you just bother to look. Too bad Airbus isn't in the segregation business. Thanks for letting us know where you stand on the issue though.

DaxOmni:

Some interesting views expressed above !! Never mind, on we go.

The seating plan you have linked is one of the current proposals informally known as the "555". This has 96 Business and 103 Premium Economy seats on the Upper Deck and 22 First and 334 Economy seats on the Main Deck. The rise of 4-class, and of Premium Economy (and the reduction in size of the F section) has actually happened since the original A380 plans were devised, and has led to this suggested rearrangement, which still would segregate things by class. An expectation would be that F pax would board by the forward premium jetway (Upper Deck) and go down by the forward stairs to their accommodation.

The reference to the executive areas on the "Optional Lower Deck" is to an optional third level below the Main Deck. I don't think you have understood that one of the A380 options is for a triple-deck layout (not a part of the 555 layout). This lower level (reminiscent of what Lockheed offered on the Tristar, which only a few took up) can be instead of some of the cargo area. I believe it will not be certified for occupancy during takeoff/landing. Some airlines may prefer to use ths area for additional cargo space instead.

Any more information required on the A380, please just ask.

"The reference to the executive areas on the 'Optional Lower Deck' is to an optional third level below the Main Deck. I don't think you have understood that one of the A380 options is for a triple-deck layout (not a part of the 555 layout)."

You are correct in assuming that I didn't realize the "lower deck" referred to the baggage area level. Thanks for clarifying.

Airbus puts it this way...

"The A380 also gives airlines a lower deck on which lavatories, sleeper cabins, crew rest-areas, business centres -- or even a cr�che -- can be placed, so there is yet more space for more passenger amenities or seats, to make the aircraft more comfortable and so more attractive to passengers in economy, club or first class"

http://www.airbus.com/product/a380_comfort.asp

My guess is that even airlines who equip optional business or lounge areas will eventually scrap them and use the bottom level strictly for baggage and air-mail purposes. I could also see some airlines putting coach seats down there for discount fares and low-level redemptions.

I've flown F on the upper deck of an AF 747-200. On the AF 747-400, part of business class is upstairs, and F is in the nose.

CP had its FC in the u/d of its -200s (FC dropped when the -400s came along IIRC). NW also had FC in the u/d of its -200s (hence these seats are roomier than the l/d).