Air France to scrap its entire Airbus A380 fleet
Air France bids "Adieu!" to all nine of its Airbus A380s, becoming the latest airline declaring an early superjumbo send-off.
By David Flynn, May 21 2020
Air France will ditch the double-decker Airbus A380, making it the latest airline to walk away from a jet that's now seen as simply too big for the downsized travel demand of the coronavirus era.
The SkyTeam member already planned to phase out its nine A380s by the end of 2022, but now says all have met a "definitive end" which will take immediate effect, as the jets have already been grounded.
"The phase-out of Airbus A380 fleet fits in the Air France-KLM Group fleet simplification strategy of making the fleet more competitive, by continuing its transformation with more modern, high-performance aircraft with a significantly reduced environmental footprint," the airline said in a statement.
Air France said its newer Airbus A350 and Boeing 787 jets, "whose deliveries are ongoing", would take over from the A380.
The mammoth jet is a tough bet for airlines which are braced for demand not to return to prior levels until 2023 or later. Airbus had already opted to discontinue the A380 program as carriers looked to simplify fleets and upgrade fuel efficiency but now airlines around the world are opting to retire it early.
Long-time A380 champion Emirates is now seeking to scrap its last five Airbus A380 orders and cut as many as half of its 115-strong A380 fleet.
In April, Lufthansa said it would retire six of its 14 A380s earlier than scheduled, while Qantas may follow a similar path with its own A380s as part of a sweeping review of its entire international fleet to reshape the airline around post-coronavirus travel demand.
"There is a potential to bring all 12 (A380s) back (into service), but there is a potential to bring less than 12 back," Qantas Group CEO Alan Joyce told Executive Traveller of the airline's flagship jets. "That will depend on what the recovery scenario looks like. The Qantas of 2021 and 2022 will not be the Qantas of 2019."
Qantas has also halted a multi-million dollar upgrade program which was to have seen all A380s outfitted with new business class and premium economy seats, new inflight lounges and refreshed first class suites by the end of this year. Only half of the 12 A380s have been refurbished.
Browse: See what's new in Qantas' upgraded Airbus A380
Additional reporting by Bloomberg
David Flynn is the Editor-in-Chief of Executive Traveller and a bit of a travel tragic with a weakness for good coffee, shopping and lychee martinis.
QF
11 Jul 2014
Total posts 972
I remember when the first A380 landed in Brisbane, Airbus said it was the Boeing killer. The old story don't believe everything you hear and that applies to airline travel in general.
12 May 2020
Total posts 2
Looks like done cheap A380s ready for pickup by enterprising airlines. If they're cheap enough, the economics makes sense.
26 Jul 2015
Total posts 75
Inevitable, but a great shame. They are such great aircraft to fly on.
Qantas - Qantas Frequent Flyer
16 Jan 2018
Total posts 125
The A380 could work where the travel demand exists (larger populations), Salli though, while Boeing isn't as large, the A380 in today's climate is just unsustainable. Airlines are even preferring to use their older fleets (EY's 777, EK's 773, etc), over their newer and flashier fit outs.
United Airlines - Mileage Plus
20 Dec 2013
Total posts 31
I read somewhere a few weeks back that some airlines are reconfiguring them for cargo.
25 Sep 2013
Total posts 1245
With the A380 being the flagship aircraft for most, if not all, of the airlines that operate it and therefore carrying their most premium cabin product, Air France was the only airline in the world that still had angled seats in business class on their A380s. Their first class seat on the A380 was also last-generation and wasn't a patch on the B77W product. For those who travelled regularly in the premium cabins I suspect they won't be missing the aircraft sorely, as sad as news of this aircraft type being retired is.
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