Marking its first step in the gradual build-up towards becoming the world’s largest operator of the A380 super-jumbo, Emirates Airline, customer of 55 of the 173 aircraft ordered and committed thus far, is gearing up to jointly conduct hot weather operability tests with Airbus on the aircraft in Dubai, starting on Wednesday.
The tests, beginning with hot weather trials and followed by technical training later in the year, are part of an extensive campaign by Emirates to prepare for the A380’s smooth entry into the airline’s fleet in 2008; and add to the extreme weather testing conducted by Airbus in the Middle East and Africa last year.
The aircraft, MSN007, will undergo airport compatibility checks, on-ground and in-flight service checks, and ground handling and maintenance procedure tests during its seven-day Dubai stay.
Flown by Airbus test pilots, and experienced and trained Emirates pilots, two flights each will take to the Dubai skies on Friday and Saturday, operating on back-to-back schedules with a two-hour turnaround period.
To simulate normal operating conditions, 517 passengers, representing Emirates staff from across the network, selected randomly from over 11,000 applications to fly on the test flights, will undergo all pre-flight formalities. These include check-in through self-service kiosks and boarding via double-decker bridges at fixed gates – already in place to ensure A380-compatibility. To test tarmac boarding, passengers will board through remote gates that require up to 10 buses carrying 50 passengers each to reach the aircraft.
Emirates has strengthened its pre-flight operations to handle the larger volumes – on average, 40 per cent more passengers per flight. When in the skies, the passengers will be attended to by 22 cabin crew and served a complete refreshment service.
The campaign will also afford opportunities to Emirates Engineering to familiarise itself – literally – with the nuts and bolts of the aircraft. Engineering staff together with Airbus personnel will conduct routine maintenance of the aircraft, including main wheel and nose wheel changes, engine cowling opening, and cabin systems checks.
A critical component of the testing programme is the full-docking trials in the new Dhs1.3-billion Emirates Engineering Centre. The A380-compatible facility can house 18 A380 aircraft; one in each of the eight hangars, nine in the dedicated parking bays outside the hangars, and one in the engine run-up facility. The hangars’ dimensions are aligned to the A380 facilities constructed by Airbus at its headquarters in Toulouse.
Emirates flies five times weekly from Dubai to Malta via Larnaca in Cyprus, on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays on the new Boeing 777-200.