The Airbus A380 is a large wide-body airliner that was developed and produced by Airbus. It is the world's largest passenger airliner and only full-length double-deck jet airliner. Airbus studies started in 1988, and the project was announced in 1990 to challenge the dominance of the Boeing 747 in the long-haul market.
The A380 is the largest and heaviest passenger aircraft in the world. It is 73 meters long, 24 meters high, and has a takeoff weight of up to 560 tons. The Lufthansa A380 seats 509 passengers, and its four Rolls-Royce engines each generate 70000lbs of thrust. That‘s the rough equivalent of what 3500 cars could produce. Ecologically speaking, too, the A380 raises the bar. The megaliner is quieter than other planes, uses less fuel and can even “think” for itself and automatically apply the brakes after landing on the runway.
Engine Alliance – the engine manufacturer behind the A380.
Before entering service on Emirates’ A380s in 2008, the GP7200 required more than a decade of engineering. Developing an engine to handle the A380’s size and complex aerodynamics demanded volumes of original research.
Quiet power
Power enough to lift such an aircraft was only one consideration. To be viable for airports, the A380 was going to be held to stringent noise standards, along with high maneuverability on the ground.
Consistent durability
Because the bulk of the service was centered in the Middle East, the demands on the engine to withstand unrelenting heat and the destructive forces of wind and sand were unprecedented.
Affordable efficiency
Fuel burn would be one of the most critical measurements of the engine’s success. Fractions of percentages of efficiency could swing millions in operating costs one way or the other.
Incredible size
Then there was the “simple” problem of transporting an engine for assembly. As there was only one aircraft in the world large enough to carry a fully assembled GP7200 from engine manufacturer to assembly site, a cost-effective modular shipping system would have to be devised.
.jpg)
Emirates and the A380
Emirates is by far the biggest operator of the Airbus A380. It currently has 116 aircraft in the fleet (with 73 active as of mid-August, according to data from ch-aviaion.com). This is much more, of course, than any other airline.