I love flying on the Airbus A380, I know airlines are looking to downsize to the Boeing 787 Dreamliner, but as a passenger, I find the A380 far superior for long haul travel. I understand Airbus is having trouble selling new aircraft and the A380 production may cease - that's a shame.
I had a longhaul flight from Perth to Dubai on a 777-200 and I can’t say it was a great experience. The aircraft was operated by Emirates, a pretty decent airline but I still felt uncomfortable and cramped. Even with a aisle seat, I was able to stretch my legs but was bumped into by staff moving up and down the aisles.
The entertainment system didn’t work, the movie kept losing sound, the screen froze or I had issues loading programs. Maybe that just added to my annoyance, I gave the entertainment system away and used my own tablet to pass the time instead. I understand this is just an annoyance and not indicative of the aircraft design.
From Dubai to Frankfurt, the A-380 was a totally different experience, it was easy to get up and move around. I was four rows back from the front of the aircraft, people were standing in clear spaces chatting, walking around and generally looking relaxed.
I felt the atmosphere was vastly improved, people genuinely looked better and appeared happier. My choice is definitely the A-380 even though the 787 has been promoted to ultra long-haul travel from point-to-point instead of the current hub-and-spoke model.
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