On November 3rd 2017, Emirates reached a milestone as it received its 100th A380 at a special ceremony at Airbus’ delivery centre in Hamburg, Germany.
Airbus depends on Emirates to keep the program aloft
Year of Zayed tribute
Emirates unveiled a special tribute to the late HH Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, founding father of the United Arab Emirates, with a special livery for its 100th A380.
2018 is the “Year of Zayed”, marking 100 years since the birth of the country’s founding father and celebrating his legacy. Emirates is proud to launch its tribute to the man who has been instrumental to the UAE’s formation and development, at the milestone delivery of the 100th A380. Sheikh Zayed was a true pioneer and visionary. Bringing his message of inspiration, daring and determination to the world as Emirates flies the A380 around the globe, it is an apt way for the airline to celebrate his amazing legacy.
The Future of the Airbus A380 and Emirates
The A380 has enjoyed success, due in large part to Emirates. Airbus unveiled the updated A380plus at the Paris Airshow last June. The new version of the iconic Superjumbo has a host of upgrades, which should offer airlines better economics and improved operational performance at the same time.
Airbus claims the new airliner has upgraded the giant aircraft in five main areas including fuel efficiency and passenger capacity. The aircraft manufacturer hopes the new development will make the A380–which hasn’t generated a single new order in more than a year–more financially attractive for airlines. Airbus states that this is the needed next step for their iconic aircraft to best serve worldwide traffic growth and the evolving needs of the A380 customers. The most obvious upgrade made to the A380 is the addition of a set of split winglets that are designed to curtail the effects of induced drag and wingtip vortices. Airbus claims the improved aerodynamics created by the winglets will boost the plane’s fuel economy by 4%. According to Bloomberg, Airbus is negotiating with Emirates for the order of 20 A380plus aircraft.

