gazzer
16th Nov 2007, 11:56
Does anyone know what Airbus will be doing with the 5 A380 prototypes?
JOE-FBS
16th Nov 2007, 11:58
Eventually, delivering them to customers IIRC.
chornedsnorkack
16th Nov 2007, 12:15
Who knows?
There have been 8 prototypes.
2 prototypes were never meant to be completed and flown. 1 of them was tested to destruction and remains have been scrapped. It broke at 147% ultimate load, but Airbus did not build another improved frame to prove that it could stand 150% load. 1 prototype is being tested to destruction by fatigue. It does not seem to have failed so far - when would the lifetime of A380 become known?
Now the 6 prototypes to be flown... 001 is supposed to be kept by Airbus.
002, 004, 007 and 009 are making test and publicity flights. They were supposed to be delivered to Etihad after testing. But then Etihad deferred delivery and is understood not to want those frames - Etihad would eventually get new frames, and the 4 test frames have been sold second hand as whitetails. Allegedly 3 were bought by Emirates and 1 by the Saudi prince for flying palace.
037 is incomplete. This is the 380F prototype and was supposed to go to UPS after testing. Now that 380F is cancelled, what is the state of the frame and what are the plans with it - complete the freighter when someone else launches 380F? Scrap the incomplete frame? Complete it as passenger frame and sell as whitetail?