The A380 is an airplane that Airbus SAS specialists worked on. It is the world's largest passenger airliner. The vessel reaches 24.08 m in height and 72.75 m in length. The wing span of the aircraft is 79.75 m. In a single-class configuration, it can carry 853 passengers, in a three-class configuration - 525. The maximum non-stop flight distance is 15,400 km.
The work of the creators
According to the developers, the greatest difficulties were encountered in the search for options to reduce the weight of the A380 aircraft. The aircraft was made easier thanks to the widespread use of composite materials when creating not only power structural elements, but also auxiliary units, the interior and much more. In addition, for these purposes, the most advanced technological solutions and modified aluminum alloys were used. So, 40% of the mass of the eleven-ton center section are carbon fiber. For the production of the side and top panels of the fuselage, the Glare hybrid material is used. Laser welding of the skin and stringers of the lower fuselage panel allowed to significantly reduce the number of fasteners.
Airbus A380 is an airplane that took about ten years to build. The cost of the grandiose project amounted to twelve billion euros. According to Airbus representatives, for this amount to pay off, four hundred and twenty copies of the aircraft must be sold. Based on this information, you can calculate how much the plane costs. The amount is impressive - 28 million 571 thousand 428 euros per copy.
How it all started
The A380 is an aircraft that they began to develop with the following goals: expand the range of Airbus SAS products and displace Boeing-747 from the leading position. The debate about the final configuration of the aircraft ended in 2001. The first components of the A380 wing were produced in January 2002. According to initial estimates, the cost of the program ranged from 8.7 to 8.8 billion euros. After the assembly of the first aircraft, this amount increased to 11 billion (subsequently it was still increased).
It should be noted that employees of the Moscow Engineering Center Airbus ECAR made an invaluable contribution to the design of the A380F. Thanks to the efforts of Russian designers, a large amount of work was carried out to design individual parts of the fuselage, strength calculations were performed, on-board equipment was placed, and support for serial production of the aircraft was provided.
Where are components manufactured and how are they transported
Specialists in France, Germany, the UK and Spain are working on the construction of the main sections of the airliner. Due to the large size, these components were delivered to Toulouse by water and land transport. Some parts still fit in the An-24.
The tail and nose elements of the fuselage were loaded horizontally onto the Ville de Bordeaux (owned by Airbus) in Hamburg to travel to the UK. Consoles of wings produced in Broughton and in Filton were delivered to bridges in Mostin. There, these elements were loaded onto the aforementioned Ville de Bordeaux. In Cadiz, the ship received tail components and lower sections of the fuselage. Everything was unloaded in Bordeaux. From there, the constituent elements were transported to Langon, and then delivered by land to Toulouse. Already assembled aircraft were sent to Hamburg for final equipment. The A380 is an airplane that needs 3,600 liters of paint to cover (total lining area is 3,100 square meters).
Test
Modern aircraft before the direct release of flights undergo the most serious tests. The A380 model is no exception in this regard. Especially for versatile testing, five aircraft were built. The first board was presented in Toulouse in January 2005. On April 27 of the same year, the first flight was completed. The flight team consisted of six people, led by Jacques Rossi, an experienced test pilot. A successful landing occurred after 3 hours 54 minutes. after takeoff.
A series of test flights started on December 1, 2005. It was then that the aircraft reached an impressive speed of 0.96 max during a gentle dive.
The A380 is an airplane (see photo above) that made its first transatlantic flight on January 10, 2006. The beginning of the same year was marked by the first unforeseen situation: during a static test at the Toulouse aircraft plant, the wing of one ship suddenly cracked, unable to withstand a load of 145% of the nominal . As defined by aviation safety standards, no integrity changes should occur at a load of 150% of the installed load. As a result, the management of the Airbus consortium decided to amend the design of the wings of the aircraft. Due to the addition of reinforcing elements, the total weight of the structure increased by thirty kilograms, fourteen of which were fixing bolts.
The first flight test of the A380 model with passengers on board was successfully carried out on September 4, 2006.
Design features
A 380 800 - modification, designed to carry 555 or 583 passengers (depending on configuration). In 2007, Airbus began to offer customers a vessel with a lower capacity (525 seats) in exchange for an increased flight range (it was possible to do more by 370 kilometers). This transformation has made it possible to achieve maximum compliance with premium transportation trends.
There is another modification of the airbus in question. This is a cargo version of the A380-800F. The aircraft is capable of transporting up to one hundred and fifty tons of cargo. The maximum flight range is 10,370 kilometers.
In the future, it is planned to produce jet passenger aircraft of the A380-900 modification. They will be distinguished by greater capacity (656/960 passengers) with a similar flight range.
Pilots workplace
In order to reduce the cost of additional crew training, all Airbus are built with the same cockpit layout and aerobatic performance. The A380 features an improved glass cabin. Steering wheels can be remotely manipulated with electric drives that communicate with the side control handle. The most modern information display devices are installed in the crew cabin. These are nine interchangeable LCD monitors measuring 20 by 15 centimeters. Two of them are indicators of navigation data, two display the basic information about the flight, two more inform about the operation of the engines, one provides data on the current state of the entire system. The remaining two monitors are multifunctional.
To refuel the aircraft in question, you can use a mixture of natural gas and aviation kerosene with GTL.
Materials used
How much does an Airbus A380 cost ? More than twenty eight million euros. The impressive amount that is required for one aircraft is largely due to the use of improved composite materials, including plastic and metal reinforced with quartz, carbon and fiberglass. In addition, aluminum alloys are actively used in aircraft manufacturing. In combination with laser welding, this eliminates the need for rivets.
Ensuring a comfortable flight
As experts have established, the noise level in the cabin of the A380 is half that of the Boeing-747. In addition, inside the aircraft in question, the air pressure is maintained at a higher level. Both of these factors are designed to provide less fatigue for passengers during the flight.
Two ladders located in the tail and bow of the aircraft connect the upper and lower decks. The A380 is characterized by impressive individualization capabilities. That is why, as noted in the Airbus concern, the growth rate of production is not as high as previously expected. The aircraft can be equipped with a shower, a bar, a lounge, a duty free shop. Due to the presence of a satellite channel for passengers, a telephone connection or wireless Internet connection (Wi-Fi) is organized.
Currently, air transportation in Russia using the A380 is not performed. An order was made for four sides, but so far not one of them has been built.
Unexpected situations
The first state of emergency occurred on November 4, 2010. That day, the Qantas-owned A380 flew from Singapore to Sydney. One of the aircraft engines failed just a few minutes after takeoff. The plane was forced to return to the airport in Singapore. According to Australian authorities, none of the 433 passengers and 26 crew members were injured. In addition, chassis tires burst at the emergency side during landing. After this incident, the company's management decided to suspend flights of all its Airbus A380 for two days until the completion of their detailed inspection.
The second incident occurred on April 12, 2011. Then the board, owned by Air France, caught the tail of the CRJ 700 with its wing. There were no casualties.
Conclusion
The Airbus A380 is the result of the hard work of developers and manufacturers. This aircraft surpasses its closest competitors in many ways. How much does an airplane cost, what are the features of its design and the creation process? All these questions are answered in the above article.