Is this a problem for A380 operators?

[Melburnian1]

This is lifted from an interview with Sir Tim Clark of Emirates:

Clark: Two A380s that we have identified to be most economic for us will be taken out of service in 2020. The first A380 delivered, registered A6-EDA, will only drop out in 2021 or 2022. That’s because of the financial arrangements with those aircraft, some of which are leased. There is a plan to bring us down over the next decade to recognize that they can’t fly forever, unfortunately, and cost of maintenance will rise as they get older. We have to do some major landing gear changes, originally after ten years of service, we pushed it out to twelve years. We need to rob the gear of those rather than spend $US25m for new gear. We just take them off those retired aircraft and recycle their gears. To take the gear out to overhaul it, you got to have a replacement gear, otherwise, both aircraft don’t fly. The lessors have to decide what to do with the aircraft we return to them. You never know, we may decide we want them back again. But we’ll give them a price that we are determining, not them. Otherwise,, they’ll sit on the ground doing nothing.

-----------------
Is this a problem for SQ, QF and other A380 operators? EK has 113 of these, far more than any other airline.

 

[moa999]

Qantas has already had at least one set of landing gears overhauled by Emirates as part of the painting contract.

Emirates Engineering announces aircraft maintenance deal with Qantas

DUBAI, UAE, 05 Feb 2018- Emirates Engineering has announced an agreement with Qantas for aircraft maintenance. Under the terms of the agreement, Emirates Engineering will strip and repaint eight Qantas A380 aircraft starting March 2018. The aircraft will be repainted with the latest Qantas...

www.emirates.com

Wouldn't be surprised if Etihad has done a few subsequently in Abu Dhabi.

The EK plan of having a spare set to swap in is smart

 

[docjames]

The fleet decisions (retirements, deferments, cannabilisation, leased vs owned etc) for EK with the size of the EK A380 fleet will be categorically different to the fleet planning of QF who have 12 (and most other operators). It will also depend on how the aircraft works for the relative airlines (ie. some with small fleets will keep them flying, others will sell/retire/hand back to lessor). Each decision will of course impact parts and leasing availability which will (potentially) flow onto operating costs for the remaining operators.

I’m not sure you can read too much into EK’s fleet plan other than every one they retire adds to the spare aircraft pool / spare parts pool.....

 

[jb747]

It will be a problem for EK's lessors.

 

[moa999]

It will be a problem for EK's lessors.

And SQs and AFs and probably more than a few others. Think QF was one of a few to buy outright/ on finance leases (AF was 5 owned/ 5 leased).

Suspect EK will play it's lessors against each other and get some very cheap extensions for a proportion of the fleet