China Southern Airlines Performs Final A380 Flight

November 8, 2022

Today, China Southern Airlines sadly performed their final flight with the Airbus A380 jumbo-jet. The airline had 5 of the super-jumbos in their fleet, with an average age of 10.7 years. They were also the only operator of the A380 in China.

However, the retirement of this jet is not uncommon- airlines such as Air France have also set their A380s to a similar fate. This is due to the inefficiency of the jet as it has 4 engines, which requires a lot of fuel. The jet is also very big to fit in many airports. As numerous airlines move away from the hub and spoke model, not many routes have enough demand to fill up 500 seats.

The final China Southern flight was CZ328, from Los Angeles (LAX) to Guangzhou (CAN) on November 8, 2022. The flight landed in Guangzhou at 6.18am local time, and was operated by B-6139, a 10.6-year-old Airbus A380, delivered in September 2012.

As of now, 2 of the 5 China Southern A380s have been scrapped, with the remaining likely facing a similar fate as there is virtually no second-hand market for the type. China Southern's Airbus A380s will be replaced by their Boeing 777s, 787s, and Airbus A350s.

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Written by: Sohail Sawlani
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