Emirates-Airbus A380 Rescue Op Catches Industry Unawares

Emirates has safeguarded its interests and also at the same time, been a ‘good friend’ to Airbus without bruising its relationship with Boeing

- Bikram Vohra

TO SECOND GUESS HOW sweet the deal was or what great concessions Airbus made to rescue the A380 from the pages of history, is pointless. Without knowing the exact price or payment terms, the industry is only making wild assessments about the Emirate-Airbus surprise coming together on the A380.

It was not on the cards and there will still be naysayers who will feel this temporary band aid is not enough to keep the world’s biggest plane in the sky.

To an extent, the $16 billion for 20 more A380s and 16 options by Emirates, the Dubai-based airline, will keep the assembly line open and save scores of jobs while also affording Emirates Airlines the pleasure of a valid airliner and not one that has written its epitaph and become obsolete. That is a psychological no-no in aviation with a ‘what, we are flying a plane they don’t make any more’ sentiment that does not sit well on the seats.

Emirates, with more than half the manufactured behemoth double deckers in its fleet (101 as of now), has made a global imprimatur with this largest passenger aircraft and opened up long distance city pairings and literally girdled the globe. It gets no joy in dispatching its lead star to the abyss and has to weigh in with some considerations of its own even though it was ready to pay the piper at the November 2017 Dubai Airshow and walk away from further purchases unless Airbus guaranteed at least 10 years more of manufacture. Airbus delivered 15 of the planes last year, and will only deliver 12 more this year.