A380 Rumour

[bushcat400]

Heard a rumour today about CX purchasing A380s. I am sure many have heard something of this nature before, but the details of it is that 10 have been purchased from Emirates, and the first two are "free" in the deal that has been allegedly done.

Maybe that is where our SLS went...:}

[Rook]

Oh man, lets hope not. 748 pax seems to make more sense.

[Lowkoon]

Sounds like an ideal opportunity to switch to manufacturer's SOPS! I know, dream on... :ugh: Im sure CX already knows better than Airbus on how to drive a 380... "All switches normal!"

But I must admit, the 380 will look pretty good in KA colours running up and down to PEK and PVG! :ok:

[Fly747]

Airbus have cut the production rate and are desperate to find an alternative to Emirates, can you really see them taking all their order?
I heard a similar rumour that CX and BA have combined to squeeze airbus' nuts as hard as they can. BA may even take a couple next year.

[ALPHA FLOOR]

A friend in EK told me this story too

Subsequently heard that John Leahy has been in town and camped out on the 9th floor - the question is if TT is allowed to sign the cheque or if Adrian S has other plans..... mmm where there is smoke there is usually a fire they say.

AFL

[Frogman1484]

Alpha floor...elaborate on other plans.

[geh065]

This is not yet a done deal and Emirates may or may not be involved at the end of the day. However it seems the price is low enough at the moment for them to seriously consider buying up to 10 aircraft which they want sooner rather than later which would mean taking slots currently assigned to other carriers.

[Captain Dart]

Oh no! Think of all the fruity-accented 747 Barons in long-sleeved shirts falling all over themselves to fly what will be the biggest and the best! And to 65!

[Busbert]

Tell me it ain't true :uhoh:

[Sleeve_of_Wizard]

Plenty of Airbus Captains to go round.

[flyingkiwi]

i loved that part of the rumor, "as its the biggest aircraft the senior fleet aka the -400 fleet will need to operate it.." i would love to see some of the old guys that have only flown Boeing grapple with the technology.

Personally i would love to fly it but not on the CX roster. every month it would be a choice of LAX or LON, it would fast get pretty boring, i think i will wait for the 350-1000.

[Apple Tree Yard]

yea...us 'old' guys are really, really scared of 'all' that technology! ...where's my cufflinks...? :ok:

[Arfur Dent]

Mr Kiwi
Old guys don't 'grapple with technology' - 'technology' makes life easier and easier. Ask the Classic Fleet to let you have a 'grapple' in their Sim before it goes.
Old guys don't 'grapple' with much actually - more's the pity!!!:O

[Kontract Killer]

Another amusing and arrogant post from the Jagster.

Considering what a mess the 'olds' made of their 'Classic' re-conversions and SIM checks your aving a laugh mate!

From what I hear, their responsible for the very average results and incidents for the last couple of years - nice one. :D

Back to the E type and the Oxfordshire countryside old boy!

[arse]

I understand the A380 will not even make it from LAX to HKG, so I doubt you would see it on that route. Without an ability to do NA, EUR is the only other option.

I far prefer the rumour that Cathay have secretly order some 748s, and not the Hawker Sidley version.

[Sqwak7700]

I understand the A380 will not even make it from LAX to HKG, so I doubt you would see it on that route. Without an ability to do NA, EUR is the only other option.

Sounds like you don't understand much. How can Qantas use it to go non-stop from Sydney, or even Melbourne, to LAX?

Pretty sure that it could do HK, as it is 300nm shorter than going to Sydney. :hmm:

[simplex]

Airbus 380? CX have done some idiotic things before but they're not that stupid.

[iLuvPX]

Why would any pilot want to fly an aircraft they dont even get to land manually, apart from an emergency? Boggles the mind. :ugh:

Enjoy the autolands!!

[Frogman1484]

Who says that you do not land the A380 manually? Squak7700, what about the winter headwinds coming back from LAX?

[Ex Cathedra]

In its current configuration, the A380 can fly 8200nm still air with a full load of pax. By 2010-12, improvements to the frame will allow it to fly 8500nm with the same load.

It can currently do Lax-hkg wintertime with about 60T payload (out of a max payload of about 85T), or 20-25 more than the 744, meaning it can take full pax load (500) +10T cargo compared to full pax load +almost zilch cargo for the 744. That's also 10T more than the 748, or 50 pax + 5T cargo. And that's before the planned improvements.

Despite what the Boeing lover's cult (and their fleet office guru) say, the 748i will only fly farther than the A380 if carrying less than 40T payload. (In which case you're better off with a 777). The savings from the lower operational weight do not cover the revenue loss from the extra payload of the Airbus, and since by that time CX will be able to fill those to most major long haul destinations, it makes a lot of sense. Especially if they can get them cheap...

Although the 748 freighter does wipe the floor with the competition, no question there.

[Ex Cathedra]

Oh great, more Airbus fake rumors.

The A380 can be and is flown just like any other Airbus. The pilot lands it. The machines aren't taking over, stop watching the telly yeah?

And if you think flaring a jumbo once a month makes you proficient at hand flying, think again.

[treboryelk]

ex cathedra

i thought the 380 manual landing had been deemed a non-normal procedure and the plan was for automation to rule the roost......would be interested to know if this is not the case.

cheers

[Ex Cathedra]

The aircraft can be flown and landed like any other Airbus. As far as I know Airbus does not recommend systematic autolands.

Now, if an airline decides its pilots aren't good enough and SOPs autolands, that's another issue, but as far as I'm aware, those are just unsubstantiated rumors.

[Frogman1484]

Kitsune, Have you?

[Flap 5]

Not sure where some of you are coming from with these automated Airbus ideas. I flew with the Airbus instructors when Dragonair first got the A320 back in 1993 and they were all enthusiastic about the automation - but it doesn't mean you have to fly them like that. They fly like any other aircraft when the automation is turned off, and I am sure the A380 will be the same. In fact that is the main point with Airbuses - they are all so similar.

[Five Green]

I read somewhere when the 380 first came out, that you had to be rated on an Airbus type other than the 380 if you want to fly the 380. Is that or was that the case ?

FG

[three eighty]

I am furtunate enough to fly the 380 and not remotely interested in getting into a Boeing versus Airbus mud slinging match.
I will, however, say this. If CX gets the 380 then from a pilot's perspective you can consider yourself VERY lucky should you get onto the fleet. The aircraft is an absolute pleasure to operate.
For the record, every one of my landings has been manual.

Regarding 5 greens question, I don't know if Airbus stipulated that. But I'm sure cost would play a significant factor. Far cheaper to put Airbus rated crew through a short course than Boeing pilots through a full conversion. Our airline used 330/340 crew. I believe that SQ used some 747 drivers but stand to be corrected.

[Frogman1484]

Can you fly the A380 and the A300 or A340 at the same time?

[Humber10]

I could see that happening, cx would have you ccq'd on all 3 types.... my brain would explode :bored:

[three eighty]

Ultimately up to the local aviation authourity as to weather you can MFF but I think the short answer is no. We are only rated on the 380

[goathead]

the HKCAD is owned by CX , so getting you ccq'd on all 3 wouldn't be a problem ....

[bonajet]

As there has been a fair bit of rubbish written on this thread, let's get some terms correct. CCQ refers to the conversion course, which can be shorter if converting from another Airbus type. MFF is mixed fleet flying, which has been in place with CX for well over ten years. Whilst technically there has been only two types, A330 & A340 MFF, this was, in effect three types with the A340-600. So heads have been exploding for many years. If CX ever gets the A380, CCQ would probably apply and MFF may. This would depend on many things.

[Ex Cathedra]

I did see the Airbus 380 test pilot explain the system exactly as I described on a programme about the 380


Was that when they came to HK on that promotional asian tour with the aircraft in 2007? (when it lost its wing fences in KUL...)

I think the autoland question was asked to that test pilot then.

And no, I've never flown it, but I kind of keep an enthusiastic eye on the program and would love to operate it someday.
We got the definitive answer from the horse's mouth anyhow.:)

[SMOC]

I think the autoland question was asked to that test pilot then.

I went to that briefing, yes the question was asked and the test pilot laughed and said he'd heard the rumour but it was complete crap and the A380 was like any other Airbus, but improved as you'd expect.

[air pressure]

Rumour has it that CX is assessing the viability of acquiring some deferred 380 orders from Emirates. With nearly all of our major competitors buying them, it would seem likely that we would acquire a few at some point.

[Captain TOGA]

According to LR we will have an annoucment in about 2 weeks:D

[Cafe City]

Once they see SQ's aircraft operating daily into HK from tomorrow (9th), they won't be able to resist the temptation.

[parabellum]

Five Green - At one time Airbus said that pilots going to Toulouse to convert to the A380 as part of the package, "We will train so many crews per aircraft bought" sort of thing, should have previous Airbus experience. I have no idea if they pushed that through or dropped the scheme altogether.

[Ex Cathedra]

should have previous Airbus experience.


Many SQ A380 crews came from the jumbo.

[Frogman1484]

Who is LR?

[parabellum]

Many SQ A380 crews came from the jumbo.


Quite possible, also quite possible that they had also flown the A340 beforehand, (the trainers almost certainly did), most, if not all, would have flown the A310. Quite possible that Airbus waived their rule for SQ or that SQ didn't take the "Free Training" offer and simply bought training time.
I believe the Airbus 'Must Have Previous Airbus Experience' requirement applied if they were providing the initial training as a part of the purchase package.

[LapSap]

And for those of you flying mediums, expect to hear the phrase "Line up, 3 minute delay for wake turbulence" more often. :rolleyes:

[Lemon Drop]

LR = Latest Rumor :yuk:

[popeye49]

Rumours are true.. :ok:

[quadspeed]

Rumours are false..:{