Overview
The audacious Airbus A380 is the largest airliner in the world, capable of carrying between five hundred and eight hundred passengers, depending on class configuration. The superjumbo is almost 240 feet long, with a wingspan just over 260 feet. This superbly written and photographed book follows the Airbus A380 from its birthplace in Toulouse, France, to its first public appearance at the world-famous Paris Air Show . . . and beyond. Airbus A380 gives aviation enthusiasts a VIP tour of the A380’s first two years, a series of tests and air shows spanning the globe. Winging its way through thirty-five events in eighteen countries across six continents, the A380 endures a –45°F deep freeze in Iqaluit, Canada, a scorching 113°F in El Ain, United Arab Emirates, and every testable condition in between. As the A380 is put through its paces, author David Maxwell captures all the action—on the ground, in the air, and behind the scenes—in stunning photography showcasing the state-of-the-art design and sheer size of this outrageous new superjumbo.
Synopsis
The Airbus A380 SuperJumbo is a gigantic airplane. With two full decks stretching full-length from nose to tail, this is the largest passenger airplane ever to fly. Its upper deck features bars, boutiques, duty-free shops, and other amenities. From first-class seats that recline fully into beds to the touch-screen monitors built into the back of seats throughout, the A380 is an airliner for the twenty-first century.
With four engines combining to create 280,000 pounds of thrust, the SuperJumbo can carry more than 800 passengers—555 is the A380s capacity in a typical first-business-economy configuration—and 16 tons of freight for amazing distances, up to 8,000 nautical miles. The freighter version of the A380 can carry a staggering load of more than 165 tons with a 5,600 nautical mile range. Truly, the A380 is a revolution in commercial aviation.
Fly along during tests and air shows in Airbus 380: SuperJumbo on World Tour, from the first flights into Singapore, Sydney, and Frankfurt to air shows in Paris, Dubai, and Berlin. As crowds around the world flock to see this huge new airliner, David Maxwell’s text and photographs give aviation enthusiasts a first-class seat to aviation history.