Lufthansa Flies Another Airbus A380 To France For Long-Term Storage
Today Lufthansa said goodbye to one more Airbus A380 for the foreseeable future. D-AIMI was ferried to Tarbes in France, where it will enter into long-term storage. It is unclear whether the A380 will ever re-enter service with the German flag carrier after the airline’s CEO previously cast doubt on the type.
This morning Lufthansa sent another Airbus A380 to long-term storage. Photo: Vincenzo Pace – Simple Flying
Today was a sad day for Lufthansa, and A380 fans as the German flag carrier dispatched another of its A380s to long-term storage in Tarbes, located in the South-West of France.
According to data from RadarBox.com, the 9-year-old plane departed from Frankfurt Airport at 07:42 this morning. Following a one-hour, 25-minute flight as LH9920, the aircraft touched down at its new home at 09:08. This was the aircraft’s first flight since operating a repatriation mission from Bangkok 11 months ago on March 20th. Before its grounding, D-AIMI operated around 300 flight hours a month to destinations such as Singapore, Los Angeles, Bangkok, and Delhi.
D-AIMI flew to Tarbes in France to join another of the airline’s A380s. Photo: RadarBox.com
“Lufthansa will start the transfer of five of its Airbus A380s from Frankfurt to Teruel/Spain or Lourdes-Tarbes/France in order to save overall parking and storage costs, as we currently have higher fees in Frankfurt than those in Teruel or Lourdes. The five A380s will be relocated between January and May 2021, starting today to Tarbes with the registration D-AIMC. The other four aircraft are scheduled to be transferred one by one, each month one aircraft.”
Five A380s left at Frankfurt
Following this morning’s flight, there are now five Airbus A380s remaining at Frankfurt Airport. Three of these will now head to Teruel to create a total of ten Lufthansa A380s at the Spanish aircraft storage facility. The airline will retain two Airbus A380s in Frankfurt. This will give the Lufthansa the ability to move a large number of people at once if necessary. For example, if another repatriation effort is needed.
Lufthansa will retain two Airbus A380s at Frankfurt if the need for the giant arises. Photo: Vincenzo Pace – Simple Flying
However, barring this, it seems unlikely that Lufthansa will resume flights with the A380. Lufthansa has previously said that the A380 will only return if demand recovers much faster than anticipated.
5 A380s To Leave Frankfurt As Lufthansa Outlines Storage Plans
Earlier today, one of Lufthansa’s Airbus A380s departed Frankfurt Airport for long term storage. Following the departure, Lufthansa has outlined their Airbus A380 storage plan. The program will see five of the seven A380s that had been at Frankfurt Airport sent to storage over several months.
Lufthansa is sending five more of its Airbus A380s to long-term storage. Photo: Getty Images
The A380 is sadly an aircraft behind its time. Already before the pandemic, some airlines were phasing out the aircraft, such as Air France and Singapore Airlines. Its problem is that it is hard to fill, and its four engines are hungry for fuel. However, the pandemic has amplified these issues.
The spokesperson pointed out that the move was to do with the cost of storing the aircraft for such a long period of time. While Lufthansa’s own A380 mechanics can take care of the aircraft in Frankfurt, the space that they’re occupying comes at a cost. This is significantly more than in Teruel and Tarbes that are designed explicitly with aircraft storage in mind, unlike a major international airport.
Earlier today, Lufthansa flew this Airbus A380 to Tarbes in the south of France. Photo: Vincenzo Pace – JFKJets.com
One departure a month
According to Lufthansa, the process of ferrying their Airbus A380s to Teruel and Tarbes will be a long one. The airline told Simple Flying that “The five A380s will be relocated between January and May 2021, starting today to Tarbes with the registration D-AIMC.”
They then went on to add that “The other four aircraft are scheduled to be transferred one by one, each month one aircraft.” Lufthansa didn’t specify which aircraft would depart in which order and where they would go, but six currently remain at Frankfurt,
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