Qantas has formally cancelled the eight remaining Airbus A380s it has on order, but adds that it remains committed to the 12 already in its fleet over the long term.
“Following discussions with Airbus, Qantas has now formalised its decision not to take eight additional A380s that were ordered in 2006. These aircraft have not been part of the airline’s fleet and network plans for some time,” the carrier says.
It adds that cabin refurbishment for its A380s will commence mid-year, “and will see us operate the aircraft well into the future.”
FlightGlobal schedules data shows that Qantas flies its A380s on services to London Heathrow, Los Angeles, Dallas/Fort Worth, Singapore and Hong Kong.
Airbus is expected to reflect the cancellation in its January orders and deliveries figures, which are due for release on 14 February.
Qantas adds that the addition of more Boeing 787-9s to its fleet later this year will see it start to phase out its three 747-400s and six 747-400ERs.
Flight Fleets Analyzer shows that the carrier has eight 787-9s in service, and six more on order scheduled for delivery between late 2019 and the end of 2020.
The type is primarily used on its nonstop Perth-London services, and the Melbourne-Los Angeles route.
The Oneworld carrier is also planning to order new ultra-long-haul aircraft by the end of the year to meet its ‘Project Sunrise’ requirement, through which it plans to use to launch nonstop services from Australia’s east coast to London and New York around 2022-23
Qantas chief executive Alan Joyce has said previously that Airbus and Boeing have provided data showing that they have aircraft capable of making those missions, with the 777-8 and an ultra-long-haul A350-1000 variant seen as the most likely candidates.
Source: Cirium Dashboard
