Today marks the first flight of the A380 by Singapore Airlines. What will end up happening to the troubled airliner is anyone’s guess. The troubles with the A380 are well documented and need not be rehashed. The Wall Street Journal published a decent article about it today. The plane is about 1/3 larger than the 747-400 and really is not the monumental achievement in size like the 747 when it launched. The 747 was 2.5 times larger than the 707 it replaced. Although the A380 is just a third larger it offers 50% more floor space – which will be great for passengers. Not enough airlines have purchased the A380 to make it the “aviation change” that the 747 was. The largest customer is Emirates, who have purchased 43 so far, and will undoubtedly make their premium classes in the plane luxurious while stuffing economy with passengers to the 3rd world. While I look forward to my first flight in the A380, I will not fly the plane in economy. I simply cannot imagine the jamming that will take place in the back of the bus. On the flip side, Qantas will have premium economy and their regular economy will be far more spacious in the A380. My concerns are debarkation and luggage retrieval. Qantas is the first airline to fly the A380 to the United States in 2008. Even though our Airbus friends in Europe had trouble making the wires fit the A380, which caused the most recent delay, we must all remember that technological achievements come with growing pains. The Boeing 787 Dreamliner just announced a six month delay and even the first flight of the 747 had technical issues prior to take off. But, the A380 is a marvel and will make economic sense in some markets and routes. Additionally, the plane is very efficient and it is incredibly quiet. At the test flight of the Qantas A380 at LAX this past May, onlookers were shocked to hear nearly no roar of engines on landing – it flew in like a bird. This is the real plus for the environment and those living near airports – not to mention travelers in the plane and the lower fuel consumption (based on filling the plane full of passengers). The A380 was created on computers, the 747 with slide rules…it makes one think… For more information, click here or here. -Fran Gallagher, publisher and CEO