Editorial

Yes - indeed, this was a historical day in aviation! On the 15th of October Airbus has officially handed over the first super jumbo A380 to Singapore Airlines. The ceremony was held at Airbus' new A380 Delivery Centre in Toulouse, France in the presence of over 500 guests. The aircraft was officially handed over by Airbus President and Chief Executive Officer Tom Enders to Chew Choon Seng, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Singapore Airlines.

The known three delays caused by wiring installation problems has been set to cost €4.8 billion in lost earnings up to 2010. Airbus share price has slumped and there were serious concerns that buyers may start cancelling their orders. But now everything seems to be changed - there are rumours that Emirates will make another order on the Dubai Airshow in November. The air industry awaits BA's forthcoming announcement on whether it will hand £2.95 billion to either Boeing or Airbus to replace its ageing fleet of aircraft. The British goverment is encouraging the carrier to 'buy British' because Airbus employs 13,000 staff members in Britain. After concerns that the delay will be a PR disaster for the european company and could well deter prospective customers - it seems the future looks bright for Airbus again...