Gulf airlines watch as 'superjumbo' takes flight

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Singapore Airlines first commercial fight with the A380, pictured, was closely watched by Gulf airlines. (Getty Images)

The world’s largest jetliner, Airbus' new A380 ‘superjumbo’, completed its first commercial flight on Thursday, making aviation history as it touched down in Australia in the early hours of the morning.

The Singapore Airlines flight took off from Singapore's Changi Airport and landed safely around seven hours later in Sydney.

The 455 passengers onboard the A380 were handed out champagne and certificates to commemorate their journey, for which some had paid hundreds of thousands of dollar.

Airlines in the Gulf will have been watching the launch closely as many have been linked to massive orders of European manufacturer's flagship aircraft.

Dubai-based carrier Emirates has placed the single largest order and other Gulf carriers - including Etihad and Qatar Airways - have expressed an interest.

Emirates has ordered a total of 55 A380s and expects to take delivery of its first plane in August next year.

The wait for the much-delayed A380 ended on October 15 when Airbus finally delivered the first aircraft to Singapore Airlines - the world's biggest carrier by market value.

The launch of the ‘superjumbo’ has been plagued with delays for two years, costing Airbus parent EADS billions of dollars.

In October last year Singapore Airlines was told not to expect its first delivery until a year later. The airline originally expected to begin commercial flight with the A380 in April.

Airbus must now hand over 13 planes in 2008, followed by four every month in 2009 and 2010, to meet its revised production schedule.

The success of the A380 is critical for Airbus as it looks to fend off US rival Boeing, which this year also launched its next-generation aircraft, the Dreamliner.

Passengers paid between $560 and $100,380 to be on the inaugural flight after Singapore Airlines put all tickets for the 471-seater up for sale on online auction website eBay in August.

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