• 

  Qantas

  IATA/ICAO Code:

  QF/QFA

  Airline Type:

  Full Service Carrier

  Hub(s):

  Brisbane Airport, Melbourne Airport, Sydney Kingsford Smith Airport

  Year Founded:

  1920

  Alliance:

  oneworld

  CEO:

  Alan Joyce

  Country:

  Australia

The pandemic saw the rapid demise of the Airbus A380, with several airlines worldwide storing and even retiring their fleet of superjumbos during the height of the health crisis. Qantas was one of those airlines, having sent its Airbus A380s to desert storage in the United States for an extended period. Qantas always said the A380 would come back, and it has, but for two of the giant jumbos the pandemic has ended in a rather unceremonious manner.

Goodbye OQF

In Victorville, California, the first Qantas Airbus A380 is undergoing scrapping. The parts will be used as spares to be kept in Los Angeles Airport (LAX) and Australia. The unfortunate big bird was registered as VH-OQF, named 'Sir Charles Kingsford Smith.' While the big bird has been in Victorville since July 2020, in its time with Qantas it created some lasting memories.

Aged just slightly over 13 years old, VH-OQF was the sixth aircraft ordered by the Australian flag carrier on March 6th, 2001. It was the third of the 'Wave 2' aircraft to have the redesigned electric harness fitted and powered up. It rolled off the Airbus production line as 'F-WWSA' on February 18th, 2009, and was accepted by Qantas on January 8th, 2010. The delivery flight from Toulouse to Sydney's Kingsford Smith Airport was operated as QF6028, and it served its first revenue flight from SYD to LAX as QF11 on January 17th, 2010.

VH-OQF was also the first of the Airbus A380 fleet to get the then-new 'Silver Roo' livery, with the repaint carried out by Emirates Aircraft Appearance Centre in Dubai. It operated several long-haul routes for Qantas, such as the SYD-DFW and SYD-SIN-LHR routes. The last revenue service for the aircraft was as QF8 from DFW to SYD, and the aircraft was ferried to LAX just a few days after being withdrawn from service.

The next superjumbo in line

Qantas had 12 Airbus A380s in its mighty fleet. While the rebound in travel demand surpasses expectations in the post-pandemic era, the airline is only expecting to keep 10 of its superjumbos. With VH-OQF already being scrapped, the next in line is reported to be VH-OQE, the fifth aircraft ordered by Qantas on March 6th, 2001.

Similar to its scrapped sister, VH-OQE is slightly over 13 years of age, named 'Lawrence Hargrave' and was the second of the 'Wave 2' aircraft, rolling out of the production line on February 6th, 2009. The aircraft had operated its first revenue service as QF31 for the SYD-SIN-LHR route in December 2009 before operating its last revenue service as QF11 from SYD to LAX, and as QF94 from LAX to MEL.

And then there were 10

Of the remaining 10 Airbus A380s in Qantas' fleet, not every one has been returned to active service as yet, as the Australian carrier is being cautious in planning its future long-haul schedules. A small handful of the aircraft were brought back to operate in the SYD-LAX sector.

Another iconic return will be the longstanding flagship SYD-SIN-LHR route from June 19th, which will undoubtedly see more returns of the Airbus A380s to their former staple routes. The oneworld member airline highlights the use of five aircraft by mid-2022, and by the later part of this year, Qantas is set to reinstate the MEL-LAX route, which would probably see at least another two Airbus A380s back in the skies.

The scrapping line

The Airbus A380s, while being the first aircraft type to be withdrawn due to COVID, are making a strong comeback. Qantas' decision to keep the majority and reinstate them into active service is wise considering the increasing passenger demands, especially for its long-haul routes. However, with Project Sunrise and the A350 on the horizon, it won't be long before the almighty superjumbos see eternal retirement.