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A380 takes to the skies

25/10/2007

The largest passenger plane ever built finally took to the skies for its first commercial flight today.

Airbus' A380 superjumbo took off from Singapore in the early hours of this morning, headed for the Australian city of Sydney.

Flight SQ380, operated by Singapore Airlines, had been due to take off at 08:00 local time (01:00 BST) and arrived in Sydney after a journey time of almost seven and a half hours.

The plane is due to make a return journey from Sydney tomorrow afternoon local time.

Singapore Airlines, which took delivery of the giant plane earlier this month, said that the majority of tickets for both flights had been sold through internet auction site eBay – with all proceeds being donated to charity.

The airline revealed in a statement ahead of the A380's maiden flight that one passenger had paid $100,380 (£48,989) for himself and a friend to travel in one of the plane's private cabins.

A total of 471 passengers are able to travel within the cabin of the Singapore Airlines A380, although the double-decker jumbo is capable of carrying more than 500.

The successful take-off of the A380 on its maiden commercial flight will no doubt come as a relief to manufacturer Airbus, with the production of the super-jet having been plagued by production delays.

As a result the first A380 was delivered to Singapore Airlines 18 months behind schedule.

But speaking at the time Singapore Airlines chief executive Chew Choon Seng described the delivery as "the beginning of a new chapter for the aviation industry".

Airbus claims that advanced technologies mean that seat-mile costs for the A380 will be 20 per cent lower than for the world's former largest aircraft, with the company hoping that the plane will meet the growing demand for long-haul travel.

Earlier this month the company confirmed that it had received orders and commitments for 189 A380s from 16 customers, with Airbus stressing that planes for subsequent delivery remain "well on track".