Qantas is bringing back Airbus A380s from the California desert
It's a magnificent plane. It's very unfortunate that they launched the "shortened" version. The design and engineering was done for longer fuselage, so it actually has extra structure (and extra weight!) and larger wings than necessary. And it launched just before engines got a lot more efficient. The upside for passengers is that it's still the smoothest flying experience, even in turbulence.<p>Boeing's 747 was incredibly profitable at the time, so it cross-subsidized other aircraft like the 737 (which competed with the A320). Launching the A380 countered that effect, and it made all segments more competitive.<p>It's unfortunate that the largest aircraft are going out at the time when demand for flying is higher than ever. On the upside, the A350 has many of the A380's technologies, and is a great competitor to the 777 series (and is also a very good competitor to the 787 series!)