Airbus has begun transporting by ship five sections of the A380 ultra-large airliner from its Finkenwerder site in Hamburg to Dresden for structural tests. The first fuselage section was moved upstream by barge on the river Elbe last week and will be followed soon by two more fuselage sections and a wing shipset. The structure will be assembled at IABG's test facility by mid-2005 where 47,500 flights will be simulated to test the fatigue life of the A380 (Flight International, 18-24 May). Fatigue tests will start in September 2005 and will last nearly 26 months.
Source: Flight International
