An Airbus A380 double-decker jet arrived in Singapore Changi Airport Friday morning in its first test flight out of Europe.
The Airbus A380 is seen through a glass window as it is parked at a specially built gate after landing at Singapore's Changi Airport November 11, 2005.
With a capacity of 555 passengers in three classes, which is 30 percent more than a Boeing 747-400, the plane is believed to be the world's biggest passenger aircraft.
It will leave Singapore for Australia on Friday night for a scheduled participation in Qantas Airlines' 85th birthday celebration, and then continue its Asia tour to Malaysia.
It is reported that the arrival has been delayed by three days due to some engine problems, but the plane will come back to Singapore next year for more airport compatibility tests.
Launched in December 2000, the 421-ton airplane made its maiden flight on April 27 this year in Toulouse, the Airbus headquarters in southwestern France, while an earlier test flight saw its successfully landing at the Frankfurt International Airport in Germany on Oct. 29.
Singapore Airlines (SIA), A380's first customer, ordered 10 such planes in September 2000, together with another 15 on option. The 8.6-billion-US-dollar deal also includes the cost of spares and installed engines.
In early June this year, Airbus confirmed an eight-month delay of the first delivery of its super-jumbo jet, which was scheduled in March 2006, for no specific reason. Negotiations on compensation for the delay are being held between Airbus and airliners.
So far, 16 airliners, including SIA, Qantas Airlines and Malaysia Airlines, have ordered 159 A380s.
(Xinhua News Agency November 11, 2005)
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