Tag: AIRBUS

Airbus recently published the forward-looking "The Future, By Airbus" (PDF) report, chock full of concepts and cutting-edge ideas about the future of flight. Airbus engineers explore hydrogen as a fuel source in the 'cryoplane' concept, and mention both biofuels and solar power as alternatives. An invisible plane concept -- hardly a new idea, as Wonder Woman has been flying one for over 60 years ...

We aren't sure if showering on a plane is necessary, or very eco-friendly, but our reservations couldn't stop the inevitable from happening. Passengers on Emirates A380 planes now have the ability to take in-flight showers (and partake of every other imaginable goody that first class offers). Although the bathrooms can be enjoyed for up to 30 minutes, you're only allowed five minutes of actual ...

The FAA has released a safety advisory recommending pilots turn off cell phones in the cockpit. Passengers are well-versed in powering off before takeoff, but during a recent en-route inspection, the first officer's cellphone began ringing as the aircraft sped down the runway for takeoff. The advisory states: During the takeoff phase, just prior to reaching V1, a rather loud "warbling" sound ...

The ironies of constantly improving technology never cease to amaze. According to a piece on Slate.com, some airplane pilots are having problems sleeping on the new behemoth of an airplane, the Airbus A380, because the plane is actually too quiet. "We're getting a lot of complaints," says Emirates Vice President Ed Davidson. "It's not something we expected." Apparently, the white noise of the ...

United-Arab-Emirates-based Emirates Airlines has decided to banish all paper reading materials from flights on their brand new Airbus A380 jumbo jets. Pre-printed materials like magazines, pamphlets, and shopping catalogs (goodbye Skymall!) will no longer be available on planes. Instead, content that was previously in those printed publications and pamphlets will show up on the LCD video ...

You know that weird, checkered material you see used in cars, bikes, and sporting gear? It's called carbon fiber, and it's super light. Now, Airbus has rolled out its newest plane, made mostly of the material. The result, though still not quite friendly-skies-friendly, could become the way forward for an airline industry suffering from high oil prices and extensive financial problems. "Making ...

When people get a new GPS system for their auto, a favorite distraction is to use the thing to see if it can find quicker ways to get from A to B, even if they already know how to get there. It seems Airbus has had the same idea, using GPS to enable its airliners to find more efficient routes over the oceans, but not in the way you might expect. Jets are typically assigned a set path and ...

We've all heard the myths and rumors surrounding midair cell phone use; about how accidentally leaving your phone on while on a flight could result in you and every other person aboard plunging to their doom. Whether or not those conceptions are well-founded, they've been used as excuses to ban midair cell phone calls on pretty much every airline in the world -- until now. At last, certain ...

Want to step aboard the spankin' new, Godzilla-sized Airbus A380, but don't have a trip planned on Korean Air anytime soon? No worries. Aving.net has you covered with a full-blown photo tour of the new planes, including shots of the cockpit, wine bar, first class accommodations and even the latrines. We do not recommend this photo gallery to anyone about to board one of the ...

There's a bit of a war brewing in the airline industry, with the major aircraft players trying to out-do each other. Airbus's main baby is the A380, a huge monster of a craft capable of carrying 840 passengers. Boeing is going a different route with its 787 Dreamliner, which was spotted in the wild by intrepid aircraft fan Charles Conklin. Charles hung outside a hangar to capture the first 787 ...