Airbus CEO Guillaume Faury wants the A380 to fly for as long as possible. In response to a question from Simple Flying at today's annual results press conference, Faury called the aircraft "so symbolic and so emblematic" of the company's products.

The Airbus A380 was ultimately a flop for the European planemaker, never selling in the originally hoped numbers. In the end, just 251 airframes were built, with roughly half going to the Dubai-based Emirates. A handful of airlines that had operated the type decided to scrap their fleets entirely during COVID, while even more have partially scrapped their fleets.

Symbolic of Airbus

Simple Flying asked Faury how long Airbus would continue to support the giant of the skies. In response to the question, Guillaume Faury commented,

"We do what we do for all our existing products which are no longer in production, and some have a very long life after the production has finished... We will support it as long as there are aircraft in service. Even more, it is the A380, and it’s so symbolic and so emblematic of our products. So full support to the A380 in service."

Guillaume Faury Airbus
Photo: CWKimages / Shutterstock.com

Faury added,

"I would be very happy to see the plane flying as long as possible over the next decades."

A special relationship with Emirates

Expanding on his answer, Faury explained Airbus's special relationship with Emirates regarding the giant A380. The plane maker won't just keep Emirates' A380s flying but will also help the airline to improve the aircraft. Since Emirates's youngest plane was delivered just over a year ago, it won't go anywhere soon. He remarked,

"We have a special relationship with Emirates as half of the worldwide fleet is flying with Emirates. We have a very close relationship in terms of support, retrofits, and improvements of the plane moving forward, even if we no longer produce the aircraft."

Emirates Airbus A380
Photo: VanderWolf Images I Shutterstock.

No 2nd hand market on the horizon

In response to a follow-up question from Cirium, Faury explained that he doesn't see a market for second-hand A380s materializing, as has been the case so far. Put simply, the reason that airlines are already getting rid of the giant is the same reason that other airlines don't want them. Except for particular city pairs, it is hard to fill the giant and justify using four fuel-guzzling engines over two. On this point, Faury commented,

"It’s good to see the 380s coming back to service with the airlines that had decided to retire them, but it remains a very specific product, and we don’t see a very dynamic secondary market really changing the future with a capacity gap. With the withdrawal of a lot of long-haul aircraft, maybe, but that’s probably ahead of us, I don’t see it yet."

How long do you think Airbus will need to support the Airbus A380? Let us know what you think and why in the comments below!

  • rsz_airbus_50th_years_anniversary_formation_flight_-_air_to_air
    Airbus
    Stock Code:
    AIR
    Date Founded:
    1970-12-18
    CEO:
    Guillaume Faury
    Headquarters Location:
    Toulouse, France
    Key Product Lines:
    Airbus A220, Airbus A320, Airbus A330, Airbus A340, Airbus A350, Airbus A380
    Business Type:
    Planemaker