British Airways made a contribution to Irish aviation history yesterday when it brought its new Airbus A380 to Shannon Airport. Shannon Airport staff and aircraft enthusiasts, together with a group travel agents, were present to welcome and inspect the new aircraft.
Simon Daly, British Airways Manager for Ireland, said: “We are delighted to welcome the new A380 to Shannon Airport and are looking forward to customers from Ireland being able to experience what this fantastic aircraft has to offer when flights commence from London Heathrow to Los Angeles in September, to Hong Kong in October and to Johannesburg next year.”
The travel agents were introduced to the new aircraft and had an in-depth briefing onboard by British Airways flight crew, followed by a inspection tour of all four cabins. The aircraft has a total of 469 seats on two decks with 14 seats in First, 97 seats in Club World, 55 seats in World Traveller Plus, and 303 seats in World Traveller.
Captain Ian Yorath told Irish Travel Trade News that the flight crew were pleased to have flown the A380 to Shannon and that the airport now joins a list of British Airways-approved airports for A380 diversions.
The airline has ordered 12 A380 aircraft, which will be delivered by 2016. It is highly fuel efficient, burning 16% less fuel than the aircraft it replaces.
