Airbus A380 to make debut flight to US |
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Mon, 19 Mar 2007 07:56
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FRANKFURT, Germany (AFX) - The Airbus A380, the world's largest commercial airliner and the cornerstone in Airbus' efforts to catch up with Boeing, will make its first flight to North America today.The debut eight-hour flight will give EADS unit Airbus and German airline Lufthansa AG the opportunity to demonstrate the superjumbo to potential US buyers and to the airports they hope will be flight bases for the double-decker jet. It will also allow them to assess the performance of the plane as if it were in service.Lufthansa Flight 8940 will take 550 people -- four pilots, four Airbus crew members, 23 Lufthansa cabin crew and 519 passengers, mostly Airbus and Lufthansa employees along with some reporters -- to New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport from Frankfurt International Airport.'We are talking about an airplane that is representing aviation in the 21st century in terms of efficiency,' said Jens Bischoff, Lufthansa's vice president for the Americas.The airplane will then make a series of flights, returning to Lufthansa's Munich hub on March 28, with the aim of matching the A380's turnaround time from landing to takeoff with that of much smaller long-haul jets already in operation.Airbus has 166 orders from 15 airlines for the new plane, which has already made tests flights in Europe and to Asia. Lufthansa has orders for 15 A380s and an option for five more.newsdesk@afxnews.comjfr/ms1COPYRIGHTCopyright AFX News Limited 2007. All rights reserved.The copying, republication or redistribution of AFX News Content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of AFX News.AFX News and AFX Financial News Logo are registered trademarks of AFX News Limited
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Super jumbo A380 to come to LA after all 