According to schedule data, China Southern Airlines will operate its final outbound Airbus A380 flight tomorrow. The rotation will run to Los Angeles, following a last trip to Amsterdam operating today.
While the Chinese carrier was the only airline to operate the giant of the skies throughout the pandemic, it is now in the final stages of retiring its fleet of five aircraft. The airline sent its first two aircraft to the Mojave desert to be dismantled earlier this year. The three remaining planes have yet to leave China, though one has been parked in Gunazhou since mid-October.
The final China Southern Airbus A380 flight
According to schedule data from Cirium, China Southern has two Airbus A380 rotations planned for November 2022, with none in the following year of schedules. Given that the airline is known to be retiring its entire fleet, it suggests that this is the end.
Following an Amsterdam Schiphol Airport rotation, the type will make one final visit to Los Angeles International Airport in the China Southern colors,
| Flight Number | Date | Dep Airport | Dep Time | Arr Airport | Arr Time | Flight Duration |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CZ 307 | Nov 4th | Guangzhou (CAN) | 00:05 | Amsterdam (AMS) | 05:20 | 12h15m |
| CZ 308 | Nov 4th | Amsterdam (AMS) | 11:50 | Guangzhou (CAN) | 05:50+1 | 11h00m |
| CZ 327 | Nov 5th | Guangzhou (CAN) | 21:30 | Los Angeles (LAX) | 19:10 | 12h40m |
| CZ 328 | Nov 6th | Los Angeles (LAX) | 22:20 | Guangzhou (CAN) | 05:40+2 | 15h20m |
The China Southern A380 fleet
China Southern took five Airbus A380 aircraft from Airbus. Two of these are in storage in the United States while waiting to be scrapped. According to ch-aviation.com, the China Southern fleet included the following aircraft,
| MSN | Registration | Age (Years) | Flight Hours | Flight Cycles | Location | Remarks |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 31 | N291JM (Was B-6136) | 11.68 | 26,983 (3.08 years) | 4,668 (to 31/03) | Mojave (MHV) | Waiting to be scrapped |
| 36 | N296JM (Was B-6137) | 11.51 | 27,876 (3.18 years) | 4,595 (to 28/02) | Mojave (MHV) | Waiting to be scrapped |
| 54 | B-6138 | 11.24 | 28,876 (3.29 years) | 4,562 (to 31/08) | Guangzhou (CAN) | Last flight mid-October |
| 88 | B-6139 | 10.62 | 27,426 (3.13 years) | 4,100 (to 31/08) | Guangzhou (CAN) | Active |
| 120 | B-6140 | 10.12 | 26,449 (3.02 years) | 4,021 (to 31/08) | Guangzhou (CAN) | Active |
Retiring the fleet
China Southern is following a more significant trend within the aviation industry by retiring its Airbus A380s. Even before COVID-19, many airlines were looking to retire quad-jets in favor of more fuel-efficient twin jets. The pandemic did speed up the retirement of quad-jets for many airlines.
However, one thing makes China Southern different. At the height of the first COVID-19 wave, almost all Airbus A380s around the world were grounded and sent to storage. China Southern was the only airline flying its A380s right throughout the pandemic.
