Manchester Airport Prepares for A380 Arrival

Manchester Airport’s Runway Visitor Park is expecting huge numbers of spectators on September 1 to welcome the arrival of the world’s biggest airliner when it touches down for the first time.

The iconic A380 Airbus—a 517-seat, double-decker aircraft, dubbed the “Super-Jumbo”—is due to land at Manchester Airport at 12:25 pm, starting a daily scheduled service in what will be a world-first for a regional airport.

The Runway Visitor Park will open at 8 a.m. on the day in order to accommodate the expected crowds. Visitors arriving on foot or on public transportation will be able to enter the Park for free. Entry for cars will be by pre-booked ticket only, at $18 per car with up to five occupants. Tickets will be valid until 4 p.m.— enabling spectators to watch the A380’s departure at around 3:30 pm.

Andrew Cornish, managing director of Manchester Airport, compared the arrival of the A380 with the final flight of the Concorde to Manchester. When Concorde made its final flight into Manchester in 2003, before going on permanent display in the Runway Visitor Park, an estimated 10,000 on-lookers greeted her arrival.

The new services on the A380 will boost capacity by an extra 75 seats a day and introduce the Dubai-based international carrier’s award-winning First Class cabin, which includes another world first – onboard showers.

Emirates has been flying from Manchester to Dubai and its network of onward destinations since 1990. A second daily service was added in 2003 and its Manchester lounge – the most luxurious at the airport – was opened on October 2009.

Emirates, the biggest customer of the A380, currently flies the aircraft to London Heathrow, Paris, Sydney, Auckland, Toronto, Seoul, Bangkok and Jeddah.

Customers can book an entry ticket for September 1 at www.manchesterairport.co.uk.