The British flag carrier is sticking by the giant of the skies while its European rivals have retired the type.
If it sticks to the current schedule, British Airways will exceed its pre-pandemic Airbus A380 operations by the end of the year. Currently, 495 Airbus A380 flights are planned for August 2022, up 7% from August 2019. By November, the airline plans to operate more A380 flights in a month than at any point since its first Airbus A380 flight in August 2013.
Many assumed that the COVID-19 pandemic would mark the death of the Airbus A380, especially after large users such as Air France and Lufthansa wrote off their remaining fleets. While the type has suffered significant losses, the pandemic didn’t defeat it. In fact, like Emirates, British Airways has signaled that it is ready to continue flying the giant of the skies for years to come.