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Australia‘s national airline Qantas on Monday began selling tickets for its maiden Airbus A380 flight as it prepared to receive its first super-jumbo plane, it said.
The flag carrier, which has ordered 20 of the world’s biggest aircraft, said it would launch its first A380 flight from Melbourne to Los Angeles on October 20, followed by a Sydney-Los Angeles flight on October 24.
The carrier expects its first Airbus A380 to arrive in August despite massive delays in the European aviation giant’s delivery schedule.
Once its second A380 aircraft enters service in November, Qantas will operate two weekly A380 services between Melbourne and Los Angeles and three between Sydney and Los Angeles.
The double-decker plane can carry up to 853 people but Qantas will restrict seating to 450 passengers — 14 in individual first class suites, 72 in business class, 32 in premium economy cabin and 332 in economy.
“All four classes of the A380 will offer passengers greater levels of space and comfort, as well as state-of-the-art interiors designed by Qantas,” said Rob Gurney, Qantas Group General Manager Sales and Distribution.
“The A380 will also offer significant improvements in terms of environmental performance, including reduced fuel consumption and emissions, greater efficiency and less noise,” Gurney added.
The troubled A380, which entered service with Singapore Airlines last year, has faced long delays and budget overruns.
Last month, Airbus admitted it would fall short of planned deliveries until 2010, saying it now expected to deliver only 12 of the 13 aircraft forecast for 2008 and 21 instead of 25 in 2009.
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