THE AIRCRAFT

摘要

This distinctive airliner is now more than seven years into its operational career - the first revenue flights were conducted by Singapore Airlines in October 2007 - and is used by 12 airlines. The latest operator is Qatar Airways, which began flying the type on revenue services in October. A 13th airline, the United Arab Emirates' flag carrier Etihad Airways, is scheduled to put the 'super jumbo' into service just after Christmas on its Abu Dhabi-London Heathrow route. While it's now established in service, Airbus continues to develop its flagship product with structural changes and new cabin options. "The aircraft as originally designed achieved a very good aerodynamic performance," John Roberts, UK Chief Engineer for the A380 told AIR International. But several aerodynamic changes have been made to enhance performance, which included tweaking the wing's angle of attack by 1.5 degrees.