The Hindu Business Line : A380 takes to the Asian skies, successfully

On board Airbus A380 March 24 It may easily be amongst the most complex flying machines in the world. But, in the end, what delayed the largest commercial airliner — the Airbus A380 — to take off on the first commercial route-proving flight between Germany and Asia was a small part costing 200 and that would normally take 30 minutes to build.

The part was required for a "minor hydraulic" problem in the special A380 flight, jointly operated by Lufthansa and Airbus, and was flown into Frankfurt on a private jet from the Airbus headquarters in Toulouse, France.

"If the aircraft had been in regular service then the passengers would not have noticed the delay. But since this is a new aircraft, no chances are being taken," explained a senior Lufthansa official.

The over three-hour delay in take-off did not, however, dampen the spirits of the 500-plus passengers waiting to board the flight. No sooner had the double-decker aircraft taken off, the party in the sky began on both the decks and continued almost till the flight touched down in Hong Kong, eleven hours later.

The passengers on board were a mix of Airbus and Lufthansa officials, members of the media and 50 Germans who had won a contest on a local radio station and they all ensured that the festivities didn't stop.

The successful completion of the flight to Hong Kong paves the way for commercial airlines to operate this aircraft on routes to Asia, including India. "A commercial route-testing flight generally paves the way for commercial operations to start. It is a good way to ensure that the infrastructure on both the aircraft and the airports is able to handle the huge number of people that the A-380 will carry," said Mr Thomas Burger, Product Marketing Manager, A380.

The aircraft, which is expected to enter service later this year with Singapore Airlines, almost a year later than was expected due to production problems, has been certified by aviation authorities around the globe including in the US.

"The aircraft will definitely fly to Asia, including China and India, sometime in 2010. At the moment, China seems to be a little ahead in infrastructure development for the A380.

"But it is still too early to say whether we will fly to India or China first with this aircraft, " Dr Holger Hatty, Member of the Lufthansa Board, told Business Line.

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