Will Visit Japan, Australia And Taiwan

Airbus tells ANN the world's largest passenger jet, the Airbus A380, is embarking on a visit to the Asia-Pacific region as part of a series of demonstration tours that will take place during the year.

The Asia-Pacific tour will take the A380 development aircraft MSN7 to Narita, Japan from June 4-6, then to Sydney, Australia from June 6-8... and finally to Taipei, Taiwan from June 8-10. The tour will kick off following a series of airport compatibility trials at Paris Charles de Gaulle (CDG) airport from June 1-3 jointly with Air France.

Earlier this month, the A380 successfully completed its first tour to India, visiting New Delhi and Mumbai, the headquarters of its first Indian customer, Kingfisher Airlines. Further tours will take the aircraft to North America, the Middle East, China and a second trip to the Asia-Pacific region.

Airbus says the demonstration tours undertaken with MSN7 are part of the extensive campaign to prepare the A380 for a smooth entry into service. Operating under typical airline conditions, the aircraft will undergo airport compatibility checks, ground handling and maintenance procedures tests and demonstrate its compatibility with airports, confirming its readiness to enter service.

The A380 has already visited more than 45 airports and by 2011, more than 70 airports will be ready for A380 operations. As Aero-News reported, the superjumbo made its first US appearance in March.

FMI: www.airbus.com