Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Wednesday, Nov 07, 2007
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Online edition of India's National Newspaper Wednesday, Nov 07, 2007 ePaper |
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Tamil Nadu
CHENNAI: For 12 travellers from Chennai, it was a flight to remember. The first Indians to fly the Airbus A380 ‘Superjumbo,’ they were on board during the return leg of the first commercial flight of the aircraft from Sydney to Singapore on October 29. The A380 is the largest passenger aircraft ever built, with 471 seats. It is also regarded as the most luxurious airliner, with private suites and a cabin designed to completely keep out engine sounds and immune to air turbulence. So was all the hype and the media circus that accompanied the launch of the first flight justified? “Yes, without a doubt,” says Nithin Sadanand, one of the Chennai passengers. The passengers remarked that the biggest difference they found on the A380 was its spaciousness. “For the first time, I did not feel haggard at the end of a long flight,” Sadanand said. “You do not feel the claustrophobia that you usually experience on flights.” The aircraft has wider aisles than any other aircraft in the world, so much so that most of the 399 economy class passengers spent their time on the flight, wandering up and down the length of the aeroplane. The facilities on board were better than anything they had encountered, they said. The in-flight entertainment options were significantly wider, according to N. Mani. “They also had a range of Tamil movies for us to choose from…” High demandBharath Mahadevan, manager (Southern India), Singapore Airlines, says there has been significant passenger demand from all over the world for the A380. While the airline operates three daily flights from Singapore to Sydney, more than 50 per cent of the bookings are on the sector flown by the A380. Five per cent of the total bookings made so far are from India, and the airline is receiving 100 bookings from India every month. Indian travellers will, however, have to wait a long while before the A380s are deployed on Indian routes. The reason is airports have to be re-designed to accommodate the aircraft, with new aerobridge systems to provide access to the two flight decks. Singapore Airlines will next launch the A380 on its Tokyo sector in May 2008. It will fly to London, Melbourne and San Francisco by 2009. Tickets to Sydney from Chennai are available at Rs. 27,000 (taxes apply) for a return trip in the economy class, Rs. 1,54,000 in the business class and Rs. 3,30,000 for a suite on the A380.
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