Two QF A380s to be scrapped

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moa999 said:
Can't see a scrapping decision being made anytime soon.

But wouldn't be surprised to see the A380 fleet written down to scrap value this FY.
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moa999, for airlines, is 'scrap value' zero or a small few million dollars for larger 'frames' and much less for the smallest members of a fleet? Is there an aftermarket, say, for A380 spare parts?
 
Melburnian1 said:
moa999, for airlines, is 'scrap value' zero or a small few million dollars for larger 'frames' and much less for the smallest members of a fleet? Is there an aftermarket, say, for A380 spare parts?
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Afaik there is some value in the metal.

The theory of the original SQ frames was them being parted out to the global spares market - but I suspect with more groundings they may not have much of a market as expected.
(And wouldn't be surprised if EK, and maybe SQ, QF and BA decide to part out one of their own aircraft for internal use)
 
well, you know 530 km of aluminium conductors in the A380. based on a 1mm radius that's 3.3 cubic meters, 9 tonnes. @ $0.80 per kg scrap price = $7000.
Now if the harnesses used copper conductors we'd be talking $1.90 per kg still coated.

Possible the best way to make money from scrapping an A380 would be to sell access time to scavengers until it's gutted.. $50 an hour - go your hardest.*

* hand tools only
 
Just a thought.

With all these retired aircraft such as A380s, B747s will anyone be the first to buy a 'cheap' used one to turn into a private jet?

IIRC there was a contract for a new A380 private jet but that fell through.
 
Flying Fox said:
Just a thought.

With all these retired aircraft such as A380s, B747s will anyone be the first to buy a 'cheap' used one to turn into a private jet?

IIRC there was a contract for a new A380 private jet but that fell through.
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Buying one on the cheap is one thing; operating it is quite another.
 
moa999 said:
Afaik there is some value in the metal.

The theory of the original SQ frames was them being parted out to the global spares market - but I suspect with more groundings they may not have much of a market as expected.
(And wouldn't be surprised if EK, and maybe SQ, QF and BA decide to part out one of their own aircraft for internal use)
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The latest in that saga (SQ returned them to lessor as soon as 10 yr lease was up) is that they have been unable to part out virtually any components and the lessor made a Euro tens of millions 3rd write down on the two frames since they were given back. Near-new A380s have not found an operator (Emirates would not take them at 28% of list price reportedly) and have sat idle for must be close to 3 years now.

An update from a well-regarded MRO (Maintenance & Repair Organisation) business stated as of late May that their forecasts for industry MRO earnings from A380s til they cease all operation had been around USD 28bn. Given the announced permanent retirements made, leases now in jeopardy etc - they have revised their estimate down to USD 17bn with potential downside as things stand to USD 13bn. Also mentioned they'd been approached to see if they had any interest in buying A380 MRO businesses from one of their competitors.

Sad day for future flying 😭
 
They lost ne when I got to the bit about microwave ovens to heat up your own meals. :confused:
 
From the Sydney Morning Herald today:

Qantas is considering moving some of its Airbus A380s into long-term storage in the Californian desert ahead of a possible early retirement for the superjumbos.

The airline is not operating any international passenger flights due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and is undergoing a detailed review of how many jets it will need during the years-long recovery from the global health crisis.

Qantas chief executive Alan Joyce said in May that its was pausing refurbishments on its 12 A380s and flagged that it might offload some of the double-decker jets.

The airline is now exploring sending up to six A380s into storage at the aircraft "boneyards" either at Mojave or Victorville, both in California, according to airline sources.
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Plane boneyards: Qantas looking at moving A380s into 'deep storage' in the Californian desert
 
RAM said:
The latest in that saga (SQ returned them to lessor as soon as 10 yr lease was up) is that they have been unable to part out virtually any components and the lessor made a Euro tens of millions 3rd write down on the two frames since they were given back. Near-new A380s have not found an operator (Emirates would not take them at 28% of list price reportedly) and have sat idle for must be close to 3 years now.
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Those particular aircraft were early build machines, which had significant wiring issues. I'm not surprised that nobody (especially EK) wants them.
 
Melburnian1 said:
Why incur the expense of a one way flight to California instead of stabling them at Alice Springs if they are to return to carrying passengers at some stage? Is Alice Springs 'full', or are its daily rates more expensive than the Californian stabling facilities?
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QF has a large maintenance and engineering team in LAX. It's only an hour and a half (give or take - probably more give for LA) from LAX to the storage facility, so imagine it is a lot cheaper than paying for a large number of engineers to live and work in Alice Springs for months and months (and months).

Also, I suspect that the flight to LAX will take some cargo to offset the cost.

Finally, a part of me thinks they are gonna end up there anyway and it's more expensive to send it from Alice to California, as I suspect that's where the 6 aircraft that were not refurbished are going to stay permanently.
 
jb747 said:
Those particular aircraft were early build machines, which had significant wiring issues. I'm not surprised that nobody (especially EK) wants them.
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What are 'significant wiring issues' and what impact do they have?

I'm assuming this doesn't affect safety?
 
milehighclub said:
QF has a large maintenance and engineering team in LAX. It's only an hour and a half (give or take - probably more give for LA) from LAX to the storage facility, so imagine it is a lot cheaper than paying for a large number of engineers to live and work in Alice Springs for months and months (and months).

Also, I suspect that the flight to LAX will take some cargo to offset the cost.

Finally, a part of me thinks they are gonna end up there anyway and it's more expensive to send it from Alice to California, as I suspect that's where the 6 aircraft that were not refurbished are going to stay permanently.
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All good points. Also the Alice storage facility is temporarily full, accordingto recent statements by the airport manager. They are working like crazy to expand it four-fold by the end of the year (the project had started prior to COVID-19 IIRC)
 
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jb747 said:
Those particular aircraft were early build machines, which had significant wiring issues. I'm not surprised that nobody (especially EK) wants them.
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Yes the SIA planes returned were amongst the first built & significantly overweight.

The planes offered to EK are newer than any of Q's - not the off-lease SIA ones but Malaysia's. So the story goes the Malaysians could not believe they got knocked back as they were offered at such a low price to EK (rumoured to be 24% of list or thereabouts for near new planes) including spare parts already received.

Does make you wonder what the true 'market' value is for a 10+ yr old A380 now and going forward? There's certainly now plenty available for new owner under 7yrs of age.

Certainly making points redemptions for F on A380s much much harder in the future. 😭
 
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