Etihad will carry again its ultra-luxurious Airbus A380

Luxurious lovers, rejoice!

Etihad Airways will carry its Airbus A380 again into service, the airline mentioned on Friday.

The airline will pull 4 of the palatial double-deckers from storage and function them between Abu Dhabi (AUH) and London Heathrow (LHR), the airline mentioned, beginning subsequent summer time. The airline didn’t present an actual date or month.

Need extra airline-specific information? Join TPG’s free new biweekly Aviation e-newsletter.

Etihad grounded its fleet of 10 A380s in March, 2020 because the unfold of the COVID-19 pandemic successfully put a freeze on international journey. Though airways continued to fly bare-bones schedules and cargo flights, the A380, with 4 engines and seating for upwards of 500 passengers in some configurations, was too inefficient and costly to function.

The next yr, then-CEO Tony Douglas confirmed that the airline deliberate to maintain the A380s grounded “indefinitely,” saying through the World Aviation Competition in April that “they’re not commercially sustainable. So we’ve got taken the tough resolution to park these machines up indefinitely.”

On the time, Etihad deliberate to reorient its fleet across the smaller however extra nimble and environment friendly Boeing 787 and Airbus A350-1000, FlightGlobal reported.

However instances change.

Journey demand has surged globally since mid-2021 as vaccinations had been rolled out and nations started eradicating journey restrictions, with airways struggling so as to add sufficient capability to maintain up.

“We’ve got determined the time is correct to return a few of our A380s into the fleet to fulfill the demand which has made them financially viable as soon as extra,” present CEO Antonoaldo Neves mentioned in an announcement. “We look ahead to welcoming our friends once more on board this exceptional plane.”

By including the A380 to the London route, the airline says it will likely be in a position to unencumber capability for extra frequencies on different routes, together with and new locations.

Etihad may even add 5 Airbus A320 narrowbody jets again into service to help the A380s. These plane can be used for extra regional flights from the airline’s Abu Dhabi hub, permitting for extra connecting capability to accommodate the entire A380 passengers.

Etihad’s A380s function among the most storied and opulent merchandise within the sky, making its return an thrilling second for some vacationers.

The plane are configured with 9 firstclass “Residences,” 70 enterprise class “Studios” and 405 economic system seats, together with 80 with further legroom.

Etihad additionally contains a distinctive product on the A380 often known as “The Residence.” Primarily a three-room suite on the entrance of the higher deck, the Residence has a front room, a separate bed room and a non-public lavatory with a bathe. The lounge alone is concerning the dimension of a normal firstclass “House” seat.

The Residence, which frequently prices upwards of $20,000 for a one-way flight — though award flights have been out there previously — additionally options facilities like non-public butler service, personalized menus, and unique airport lounges and entry.

Etihad, in the meantime, will not be the primary airline to reverse course on a grounded A380 fleet.

Lufthansa mentioned in October that it might return the parked A380 to service by summer time 2023. Three of its eight A380s will function high-demand routes out of its Munich hub beginning in June, with further planes reentering service later in the summertime. Lufthansa offered six further A380s through the grounding.

In an announcement, Lufthansa cited “the steep rise in buyer demand and the delayed supply of ordered plane.”