Emirates receives final Airbus A380 superjumbo

Emirates airline received the last manufactured Airbus A380 on Thursday, the 123rd aircraft that completed its superjumbo fleet.

The delivery capped a historic run for the wide-body A380, the first new aircraft of the 21st century. There were 249 of the double-decker delivered to 14 customers, including Abu Dhabi's Etihad Airways. Emirates operates about half of the A380s in service globally.

"The A380 is a truly special aircraft in so many ways. For Emirates, it gave us the opportunity to redefine the travel experience, efficiently serve demand at slot-constrained airports, and bolster our network growth. The A380 will remain Emirates’ flagship product for the coming years, and a vital pillar of our network plans," Tim Clark, president of Emirates airline, said in a statement.

The superjumbo delivered to Emirates on Thursday features the latest cabin products, including premium economy. "Compare it to our very first A380 delivered back in 2008 and you’ll see the myriad of enhancements and upgrades invested in ensuring that the Emirates A380 experience is unparalleled," Mr Clark added.

The A380 will remain Emirates’ flagship product for the coming years, and a vital pillar of our network plans

Tim Clark,
president of Emirates airline

The A380's status, however, was not a consideration for the Covid-19 pandemic, which hit the aviation industry hard and forced several A380 operators to ground the aircraft or remove them from their operations altogether.

Germany's Lufthansa, which retired six of the superjumbos in 2019, scrapped all its A380 operations in September because of the pandemic.

Emirates is the largest customer of the Airbus A380 aircraft. Photo: Emirates

Singapore Airlines, the A380's launch customer, grounded its 17 A380 during Covid-19, and in November 2020 announced plans to trim its fleet to 12. Last month, a Qantas A380 returned to Australia after spending almost 600 days in the Californian desert.

While production of the A380 comes to an end, Toulouse-based Airbus said it will continue to service the aircraft.

"As production comes to a close, the A380 will keep flying for decades to come, and Airbus is continuing to fully support A380 operators and their fleets," Airbus said on its website.

In February 2019, Airbus announced it will scrap production of the A380. Emirates agreed at the time to receive 14 more of the superjumbos from 2019 to the end of 2021 and ordered 70 smaller A330 and A350 jets.

The A380, the largest civil aircraft in history, set new standards in aviation. Its wider cabin allows for wider seats – up to 48 centimetres in economy class – and has room for 545 passengers, although theoretically it can carry a maximum of 853.

Its cabin enables airlines to accommodate 232 more seats, or 75 per cent more than Boeing's 747-400, and 199 more seats, or 60 per cent more, than the 747-8 in a four-class layout configuration.

"The A380 has touched the lives of so many passengers by setting new standards in terms of flying and travel experience. I'm confident that it will continue to do so for decades to come with Emirates, which has continuously introduced new services and products allowing passengers around the world to experience the unique features of their A380s," said Guillaume Faury, chief executive of Airbus.

The aeroplane also needs runways that are about 300 metres shorter to take off and land compared with other aircraft in its class.

Conceived in the early 1990s, the A380 was unveiled in December 2000 and entered commercial service on October 25, 2007, with Singapore Airlines.

Emirates and the A380 highlights - in pictures

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Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.

Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.

“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.

Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.

“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.

Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.

From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.

Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.

BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.

Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.

Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.

“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.

Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.

“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.

“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”

The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”

BUNDESLIGA FIXTURES

Saturday, May 16 (kick-offs UAE time)

Borussia Dortmund v Schalke (4.30pm)
RB Leipzig v Freiburg (4.30pm)
Hoffenheim v Hertha Berlin (4.30pm)
Fortuna Dusseldorf v Paderborn (4.30pm)
Augsburg v Wolfsburg (4.30pm)
Eintracht Frankfurt v Borussia Monchengladbach (7.30pm)

Sunday, May 17

Cologne v Mainz (4.30pm),
Union Berlin v Bayern Munich (7pm)

Monday, May 18

Werder Bremen v Bayer Leverkusen (9.30pm)

Other acts on the Jazz Garden bill

Sharrie Williams
The American singer is hugely respected in blues circles due to her passionate vocals and songwriting. Born and raised in Michigan, Williams began recording and touring as a teenage gospel singer. Her career took off with the blues band The Wiseguys. Such was the acclaim of their live shows that they toured throughout Europe and in Africa. As a solo artist, Williams has also collaborated with the likes of the late Dizzy Gillespie, Van Morrison and Mavis Staples.
Lin Rountree
An accomplished smooth jazz artist who blends his chilled approach with R‘n’B. Trained at the Duke Ellington School of the Arts in Washington, DC, Rountree formed his own band in 2004. He has also recorded with the likes of Kem, Dwele and Conya Doss. He comes to Dubai on the back of his new single Pass The Groove, from his forthcoming 2018 album Stronger Still, which may follow his five previous solo albums in cracking the top 10 of the US jazz charts.
Anita Williams
Dubai-based singer Anita Williams will open the night with a set of covers and swing, jazz and blues standards that made her an in-demand singer across the emirate. The Irish singer has been performing in Dubai since 2008 at venues such as MusicHall and Voda Bar. Her Jazz Garden appearance is career highlight as she will use the event to perform the original song Big Blue Eyes, the single from her debut solo album, due for release soon.

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The specs: 2018 Nissan 370Z Nismo

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Engine: 3.7-litre V6
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Transmission: Seven-speed automatic
Fuel consumption, combined: 10.5L / 100km

Key fixtures from January 5-7

Watford v Bristol City

Liverpool v Everton

Brighton v Crystal Palace

Bournemouth v AFC Fylde or Wigan

Coventry v Stoke City

Nottingham Forest v Arsenal

Manchester United v Derby

Forest Green or Exeter v West Brom

Tottenham v AFC Wimbledon

Fleetwood or Hereford v Leicester City

Manchester City v Burnley

Shrewsbury v West Ham United

Wolves v Swansea City

Newcastle United v Luton Town

Fulham v Southampton

Norwich City v Chelsea

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