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This reminds me of the f-35. I find it absolutely insane that a mix of tax incentives can lead to this inefficient mess involving custom built ships and airplanes. Wonder how much this supply chain dynamic ends up adding to the cost of the a380 in aggregate
Maybe when it comes to flying you wouldn't want too much corner-cutting in pursuit of the max profit. Max.. why does that sound familiar?
I met an Airbus test pilot once. Among other stories he told me that the A380 is one of best balanced planes out there, and apparently a joy to fly. He said even without engines he could easily land it like a glider. Now, I can't really verify what he said, but he seemed sincere. Having travelled in the A380 as passenger, I will sure miss it.
Also the quietest plane I've ever been on.
Sad place for civilisation to lose this machine.
I met an Airbus test pilot once. Among other stories he told me that the A380 is one of best balanced planes out there, and apparently a joy to fly. He said even without engines he could easily land it like a glider. Now, I can't really verify what he said, but he seemed sincere. Having travelled in the A380 as passenger, I will sure miss it.
> one of best balanced planes out there Airliner design is regulated for stability for passenger flight on IFR approaches. So they're all pretty smooth. (The reason for the 737 MAX MCAS system was to meet those requirements, although they failed in that case.) All planes can glide if the wings are attached, and any essential electricity is available for control (if necessary.) A corollary of "all planes glide" is tha…
A purpose built glider has a glide ratio of about 60:1, so it could travel 60mi while only losing 1mi of altitude, while a Cessna 172 has a glide ratio of 9. Large passenger aircraft have glide ratios inbetween, with a 737 having a ratio of 17.
On the other extreme end you have military fighter planes, which tend to more closely resemble well propelled un-aerodynamic objects once their engines give out. The worst I could find was the F104 Starfighter, which has a glide ratio of 3-5 depending on its exact configuration. Dead stick landings of these aircraft tend to be rare, as the availability of ejection seats (especially before zero-zero seats became a thing) encourages a not-my-problem-any-more attitude among pilots who discover themselves absent a working engine.
I met an Airbus test pilot once. Among other stories he told me that the A380 is one of best balanced planes out there, and apparently a joy to fly. He said even without engines he could easily land it like a glider. Now, I can't really verify what he said, but he seemed sincere. Having travelled in the A380 as passenger, I will sure miss it.
*came together. The A380 program is nearly over. The most incredible passenger plane in the sky. Comfortable for 16+ hours. I hope they can archive the blueprints for it well enough to consider building it again in the future.
This reminds me of the f-35. I find it absolutely insane that a mix of tax incentives can lead to this inefficient mess involving custom built ships and airplanes. Wonder how much this supply chain dynamic ends up adding to the cost of the a380 in aggregate
Maybe when it comes to flying you wouldn't want too much corner-cutting in pursuit of the max profit. Max.. why does that sound familiar?
Earlier quoted context omitted.
5) If there was really a big market for the A380 why wasn't Boeing selling more 747's.
It's a good point. I suspect there's an argument that a newer design could be more fuel-efficient, but I haven't read anything on that. (The only things that operators care about are fuel efficiency and operating cost/commonality, and will the lenders finance it. Passenger comfort has no bearing.)
No point in Southwest funneling all passengers to LAX to board an A380 to HNL when they can just have directs on 737s from every west coast city.
*came together. The A380 program is nearly over. The most incredible passenger plane in the sky. Comfortable for 16+ hours. I hope they can archive the blueprints for it well enough to consider building it again in the future.
Is the comfort really any difference in an A380 vs a 777 vs an A350? Cabin configuration is really the only differentiation between modern wide bodies and that’s mostly on the airline.
Also IME engine noise is reduced given how far you can be from them versus a normal widebody.
*came together. The A380 program is nearly over. The most incredible passenger plane in the sky. Comfortable for 16+ hours. I hope they can archive the blueprints for it well enough to consider building it again in the future.