A Qatar Airways Airbus A380 has taken to the skies for the first time in more than 18 months.
The flight was made after the airline "reluctantly" took the decision to welcome the fleet of giant planes back into operation due to ongoing capacity shortage.
It is anticipated that at least five of the airline’s 10 A380 aircraft will be brought back into service on a temporary basis over the coming weeks to support fleet capacity on key winter routes, including London Heathrow (LHR) and Paris (CDG), from December 15.
The national carrier for the State of Qatar is currently facing significant limitations to its fleet capacity as a result of the recent grounding of 19 of its Airbus A350 as mandated by the Qatar Civil Aviation Authority (QCAA).
Qatar says a problem with rapidly deteriorating surface paint led to the grounding.
Airbus has previously stated a thorough assessment was conducted and shared with the European Union Aviation Safety Agency for evaluation and it was demonstrated that there is no airworthiness impact on the fleet.
Wings for the A380 were made at Broughton in North Wales before the programme was closed due to falling order numbers. Wings for the A350 are also assembled at the plant.
Qatar Airways Group Chief Executive, His Excellency Akbar Al Baker, said: “The recent grounding of 19 Qatar Airways A350 fleet has left us with no alternative but to temporarily bring some of our A380 fleet back on key winter routes.
“These groundings are due to an ongoing issue relating to the accelerated degradation of the fuselage surface below the paint, which as yet remains an unresolved matter between Qatar Airways and the manufacturer for which the root cause is yet to be understood.
“This difficult decision reflects the gravity of the A350 issue and is intended to be a short-term measure to assist us in balancing our commercial needs. It does not signify a permanent reintroduction of our A380 fleet, which were grounded in favour of more fuel-efficient, twin-engine aircraft at the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“One of Qatar Airways’ greatest assets is our highly flexible fleet of diverse aircraft. This means we are not dependent on a specific aircraft type, and enables us to balance our commercial needs with our responsibilities to maintain an environmentally sustainable fleet at all times.
“Looking forward, we remain committed to finding alternative solutions to support customer demand and maintain the highest levels of sustainability and customer experience for our passengers.
“We continue to strongly urge Airbus to prioritize their investigations into the conclusive root cause of the issue affecting the A350 aircraft type, and ensure it proposes a permanent solution at the earliest opportunity to repair the damage and correct the underlying root cause.”
Airbus said: “We do not comment on bilateral discussions with customers, which remain confidential.”
