Yet another airline has scheduled the return of the giant of the skies for next year. According to schedule data and the Asiana Airlines booking platform, the Airbus A380 will return to the Korean airline’s route network from March 2022, with flights planned to both Los Angeles and Frankfurt.
The tail end of 2021 became host to an unexpected Airbus A380 comeback. In April 2020, only one airline was operating the giant of the skies, and it seemed unlikely that many would return to the skies. This couldn’t be further from the current picture, with six airlines operating the type this December.
Asiana Airlines plans two routes
According to schedule data from aviation data experts Cirium, and reflected in the Asiana Airlines booking engine, the Korean carrier is set to bring the giant of the skies back to two routes at the start of the IATA Summer schedule in late March 2022. (Readers should note that the plan is so far out in the future that it is subject to change, meaning Asiana could bring the return to service forwards or back.)
From March 27th, 2022, Asiana Airlines will begin running a daily Airbus A380 service from Seoul Incheon Airport to Los Angeles (LAX), and Frankfurt Airport (FRA). The flights will operate to the following schedule,
- OZ 541 – Incheon Airport (ICN) 12:00 – Frankfurt Airport (FRA) 16:30 – 11h30m
- OZ 542 – Frankfurt Airport (FRA) 18:30 – Incheon Airport (ICN) 11:50+1 – 10h20m
- OZ 202 – Incheon Airport (ICN) 14:40 – Los Angeles International (LAX) 09:50 – 11h10m
- OZ 201 – Los Angeles International (LAX) 12:10 – Incheon Airport (ICN) 17:35+1 – 13h25m
Four Airbus A380s will be needed
Given the length of both rotations, Asiana will need to reactivate at least four of its Airbus A380s to operate the planned schedule. The Los Angeles flight will arrive back at Incheon after the next flight is due to leave. Meanwhile, the Frankfurt flight arrives back 10 minutes before the next scheduled flight. This isn’t enough time to turn around an Airbus A220, let alone the gigantic Airbus A380.
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Asiana Airlines’ Airbus A380 fleet
According to data from ch-aviation.com, Asiana Airlines has six Airbus A380s, all of which are parked at Incheon Airport. They have an average age of 6.8 years, and unlike most A380s, only have a “two cabin” layout, though, in reality, it is more akin to a three-cabin layout.
Officially the jets have an economy and business class. Both cabins are split between the two decks. Economy starts at the second door of the main deck and stretches all the way to the rear of the cabin in a mostly 3-4-3 layout. Meanwhile, on the upper deck it starts from the second to last exit, and consists of a 2-4-2 layout.
The business cabin is split between two parts too. Occupying the cabin’s front is the section previously known as first class. 12 “Business Suites” are arranged in a 1-2-1 layout. Meanwhile, occupying the front of the upper deck are “Business Smartium” seats, a more traditional business class, in a staggered 1-2-1 layout seen on Emirates A380s.
Have you flown on Asiana Airlines’ Airbus A380s before? How did you find it? Let us know what you think and why in the comments!
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