Aircraft
New Data Tracks the Steep Descent of the A380
New data from Spire Aviation vividly illustrates how airlines had to cut operations by the A380 and other four-engine widebodies amid Covid.
Using its satellite constellation, Spire Aviation tracked the rapid decline in the number of flights by Airbus A380s and rival widebody types. (Image: Spire Aviation)
Using its satellite constellation, Spire Aviation tracked the rapid decline in the number of flights by Airbus A380s and rival widebody types. (Image: Spire Aviation)

Lufthansa’s recent announcement that it has converted one of its flagship Airbus A350-900 widebody airliners into a flying laboratory for climate change research provided a fresh snapshot of how radically airlines have had to rethink the best use of their equipment in the continued wake of the Covid pandemic. But the wider redundancy of more established aircraft like the A380 is even more starkly illustrated by new data from Spire Aviation, which tracks the decline in utilization of the high-capacity double-decker since the end of March 2020.