Singapore Airlines Receives Second A380

Singapore Airlines receives second A380

SINGAPORE, Jan. 11 (Xinhua) — Singapore Airlines (SIA) took delivery of its second superjumbo A380 on schedule from the European aircraft manufacturer Airbus on Friday, SIA said on Friday night.

The world’s largest passenger aircraft was handed over to SIA at the Airbus Delivery Center in Toulouse, France, on Friday morning (Toulouse time), said SIA in a statement.

It is expected to arrive in Singapore on Saturday morning.

SIA, Singapore’s flag airline, is the world’s first airline to fly the first A380, which launched commercial service between Singapore and Sydney in October last year after 18 months delay.

The second aircraft will complement the first, allowing some rotation of aircraft on the existing Sydney route, and providing opportunities for crew training, SIA said.

SIA is expected to get the third aircraft in late February which will fly the London route.

Meanwhile, well-informed sources told Xinhua on Friday night that the first A380 plane with a minor damage in Thursday’s accident has completed a successful test flight, and will from nowon resume its commercial service.

On Thursday night, the first A380 the SIA got was preparing to take off to Sydney when accidentally ended on the grass verge off the tarmac. The incident caused minor damage to wheels and had to be suspended.

At the end of 2007, the first SIA A380 had accumulated over 130flights and around 950 flight hours. Its operation confirmed the excellent turnaround time and high ground operations efficiency, as anticipated, said the SIA.

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