"Airbus Readies Superjumbo For Debut"

Sunday, January 16, 2005

Heathrow airport ready to welcome Airbus "superjumbo"
Agence France Presse


LONDON (AFP) - London's Heathrow airport is spending 450 million pounds (643
million euros, 842 million dollars) to accommodate new Airbus A380 planes,
the first of which was set to roll out of its hangar. 

"The A380 will be an important aircraft for Heathrow," airport operator BAA
said on its website. 

"Its extra capacity will make efficient use of our two busy runways and will
make it attractive to airlines operating in busy airport environments such
as Heathrow," it added Sunday. 

BAA said it would spend 450 million pounds "to prepare for the A380 and
upgrade Heathrow's busy airfield". 

The Airbus A380, which gets presented to the world on Tuesday in a roll-out
ceremony in Toulouse, southwest France, is a double-decker "superjumbo"
capable of carrying 840 passengers and will rank as one of the biggest
machines ever to take to the air. 

With a wingspan of 80 metres (262 feet), an overall length of 73 metres (239
feet), a height of 24 metres (79 feet) and a maximum take-off weight of 560
tonnes, the A380 can carry more passengers than any other commercial
aircraft. 

Heathrow has said that by 2016, it believes the A380, whose customers
include British tycoon Richard Branson's Virgin Atlantic, could account for
one in every eight flights at Heathrow. 

This would enable about 10 million more passengers to fly to and from the
airport each year with no increase in the number of flights. 

Heathrow welcomed 140.1 million passengers in 2004. The airport was
meanwhile set to receive its first Airbus A380 in spring 2006. 

As well as Virgin Atlantic, other airlines planning to operate the A380 in
and out of Heathrow include Singapore Airlines, Australian carrier Qantas,
Middle East airline Emirates and Thai Airways International. 

"It is a very cost effective plane for us to compete with British Airways,"
Virgin boss Branson said Sunday. 

"It is the biggest plane in the world, it means that the mile cost per seat
comes down and therefore it just makes Virgin Atlantic that much more
competitive," he told BBC television.


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