Yesterday, an Emirates A380 that was damaged last August made its first test flight since its accident. The superjumbo fell on its nose last summer during routine maintenance at its operator's hangar at Dubai International Airport (DXB). Airbus has since repaired the jet ahead of its testing.
What initially happened?
On August 22nd, the front landing gear of the A380 completely collapsed. This left the plane with a torn fuselage, along with structural damage. Reportedly, it slipped off a hydraulic jack, which crushed its nose and gear doors.
Thankfully, there were no injuries to anyone when the incident took place. However, there would have been some expensive repairs made ahead of this weekend's testing.
Time to fly
Following the repairs, the aircraft, registration A6-EOP took flight from DXB on the afternoon of February 29th. According to AirNav RadarBox, flight EK2552 departed the airport at 14:20. The jet then circled around the coast of the Persian Gulf, peaking at an altitude of 43,000 feet before making a trip inland past Abu Dhabi.
The aircraft then went back over the sea before heading back to its base in Dubai. After nearly 3.5 hours in the air, the A380 landed at DXB at 17:42. All times are local.
Before the initial incident, the last passenger operation that this unit operated was a service from Bangkok to Dubai in August. It originally arrived with Emirates in November 2015, just under four years before it became damaged.
More on the Emirates A380
The carrier maintains a considerable amount of A380s within its fleet. According to Planespotters, The Dubai-based airline currently holds 115 of the double-decker widebodies. The aircraft type was introduced in October 2007 with Singapore airlines. In fact, it is the world's largest passenger jet, deployed for extra capacity on long-haul routes.
Since its introduction, 242 of the planes have been built. However, despite high hopes, the aircraft is already being retired by several airlines. Additionally, the parts for the final A380 were transported to Airbus’ final assembly line in Toulouse this week. Altogether, the aircraft's service has proven shorter than initially expected.
Despite it coming to the end of its service for many airlines, Emirates has held the A380 aircraft in high regard. The carrier has seen great success with the jet, using it on high demand routes such as Dubai to London Heathrow. Therefore, the airline will be excited to reintroduce the sidelined unit back into action.
Simple Flying reached out to Emirates regarding the reintroduction of the A380 but did not hear back before publication. We will update the article with any further announcements.
What are your thoughts on this superjumbo undergoing testing after what happened to it last summer? Let us know what you think in the comment section.