Company Spy & Boe787, what Goddamslacker said has some credibility. The A380 was bought by Qantas to efficiently operate 14 hour sectors - since it has been in service, it's been found to be most efficient over 9-11 hour sectors and on sectors above 12 hours, its fuel burn is excessive and thus it is not cost effective. No one disputes that the aircraft is popular with passengers but airlines have to make a profit out of it and on the sectors that QF operates it, it's not as good an option as the B777-300ER. No one with operational experience can understand why Joyce is putting it on the DFW route, it seems to be another way to burn excessive amounts of fuel.
SQ recently ordered 5 more A380's but these are not additional aircraft. They are planned to replace the first five aircraft that they took delivery of, as they are significantly heavier than subsequent aircraft that came off a mature production line. It looks like SQ will not be expanding their A380 fleet any time in the future.
“Those 50 options and purchase rights still exist,” says chief financial officer Gareth Evans. “We’ve pushed back the first couple of those from 2016 into 2017 and we’re very much looking forward to exercising those options and bringing those aircraft into the Qantas fleet.”
In that statement, Evans appears to be taking a measure of poetic licence as the B787 order book stands at 50 Purchase Rights (zero options).