Bizarre Airbus A380 airline startup Global Airlines will somehow have a couple of one-off flights in May 2025, with tickets now being on sale, or at least that’s the claim. Nothing about this airline ever made sense, but it all just keeps getting stranger.
Continue reading: Global Airlines A380 Cabin Interiors: Of Course We’ve Been Catfished
Share your questions, experiences, and thoughts below.
I believe that "Global Airlines" is not authorized to sell tickets themselves as they do not have a license.
Consequently tickets muat be sold by ATOL licensed agency "GA Flights" as per UK CAA regulations.
Do it!
You can book multi cabin itineraries easily: just buy two round-Trip tickets in separate booking classes and invite a reader…
I might be wrong but my opinion is that Global will NEVER EVER made a Comercial Flight. So don't waste your money, you will never see it back again.
Seems to me like a almost copy of Air Belgium, but without comercial service.
@ Nelson -- I don't think you're wrong, that's what I've been saying all along. 😉 But isn't that all the more reason to take this flight? It's truly a once in a lifetime opportunity...
I'm looking forward to the reviews. Especially curious about what kind of ground service they'll have.
It would be the most interesting trip report ever. Approach it with an open mind. That said, the airline may never launch regularly scheduled flights.
@ Ben, sure it could be a once in a lifetime opportunity but I bet a lot on it your money will not have the same value as you had on your Air Belgium experience. Air Belgium got comercial but about Global...not sure. Btw, I saw them doing Testflights these days at BYJ, base of Hi Fly.
Lol, that inaugural from Glasgow to JFK is on my birthday and I need to fly from Dublin to the US around that time anyway. If I could book a one-way I'd seriously consider hopping over to Scotland to take that flight. (I already have a different award ticket back home then, could use it as a backup).
Ben, I'm very much looking forward to the review. I still can't forget your TAAG Angolan reviews, and I wonder if this will get even better/worse!
By the way Ben, booking mixed cabin definitely appears to be possible. Just search a return itinerary and they let you select the cabin class for each segment.
@Lucky, why business and first? Why not economy and ask for a cash upgrade? Maybe you can book via email?
Maybe you can even book a one way?
My absolute favorite part is the cordless/portable restaurant table lamp they used in the third Instagram post slide for business class LOL
Just curious—does anyone with insider experience in aircraft painting know if the colors need to be Pantone-matched? Even something as simple as a shirt requires Pantone matching to ensure the final product matches the design.
Lucky, any concerns about safety?
If the plane has been in storage and the airline has limited cash even with the supposed safeguards isn't there a risk they haven't been as thorough as one might like?
Certainly there are airlines that it's not prudent to fly. Might this be one of them?
Ben,
How can you be so cynical as they already have a 5 star rating on Skytrax?!?
As someone who worked in the airline industry in the 70's - thru early 90's, those are the nicest beverage carts I've even seen. Not a dent, scruff or any marks. Clearly they invested some money in new beverage carts with fancy logos...instead of NWA, EAA, AAL, UAL on them - snort laugh!
Take the flight
Take the flight
Take the flight
Just make sure you purchase the ticket < 6 months before day of departure in case you have to charge it back with your credit card company.
I look forward to the review.
I will give them some credit. I have been watching this story over the years and that they have a flying plane is something. Could it have been more like what they promised? Maybe. But they are literally off the ground soon with a business plan. I thought this airline was going to be as real as that all-747 United States airline that has been all talk for decades.
@ Bill J -- "But they are literally off the ground soon with a business plan." Sorry, business plan? What did I miss?
based on the pic, the table lamps on both FCL and JCL are USB chargable ones which you probably can find on TEMU lol
We know you want to do it, so do it!! Readers will be either appalled or amused, or entertained at the very least.
I'm near certain this will be a definite 'once in a lifetime' experience!
Another publicity stunt from Global.
The aircraft registration 9H-GLOBL is made up.
Aircaft registrations consist of 5 alphanumeric characters that may be separated by a dash between the country identifier and aircraft identifier.
Global is admittedly good at issuing press releases to keep interest alive, but that alone does not keep aircraft flying.
The cost per available seat mile (CASM) of an A380 are also less favourable than those of the venerable A330 or 777-300ER as the A380 was supposed to maximize passenger numbers on slot restricted long-distance city pairs where frequencies could not be increased easily even at the expense of CASM.
I expect the Global business model will follow the path of the all business or first class airlines from the 1990s. Remember those?
No need to book any seats on an old, previously retired A380 with minimal interior reconfigurations. I’ve flown on A380’s before.
B.
@ Daniel; impossible to beat the incompetence of DT... (don't hold your breath)
@ Steve; Im in Portugal by the moment and they will be operated by the Portuguese Charter Company HI FLY (that as mentioned before, if they ever got comercial) which has a very good reputation and they have been doing Testflights since ages here in BYJ.
As I recall, you booked a flight on one of the shady African startups in order to nail them to the wall.
You did well with Africa World, and I remember your story of rerouting away from one of the September 11 flights searching for bump compensation.
You need to write a book.
Cool. Thanks. Who actually owns the airplane, do you know? Hi Fly?
The reason I ask is that while Hi Fly might supply the staff and be somewhat aware/involved with the maintenance and certifications ultimately its the owner who is responsible for the aircraft.
There aren't many, but there a few airlines I wouldn't fly because I don't trust them not to cut corners.
I’m picturing an inaugural flight of a plane full of influencers stranded on a runway somewhere in an unknown country recreating the Fyre festival…
This is what happens when a bunch of wannabes with absolutely zero clue of airline operations think they can run an airline.
From a customer perspective, you better stay away. I'd be worried for my safety, even if it's operated by a charter company.
As a former Laker Airways employee, and as one of the 1994 co-founders (with that bearded guy) at Virgin Atlantic Airways, I have a little experience in starting transatlantic scheduled (Part 121) carriers.
The Virgin start-up was no walk in the park: for one thing, we didn’t get our AOC (Air Operator Certificate) until a few weeks before our June 22, ‘84 take off. But for all its hyperbole about onboard product, this outfit hasn’t ever mentioned an AOC, which is not an easy thing to come by.
As for early operating costs, it looks like they may be parking an A380 at JFK for several days between flights .. kaching kaching!
They certainly deserve a place in the Guinness Book of Records for taking “overpromising and underdelivering” to new heights … ehm sorry, I mean depths.
Ben,
We don't expect you to suffer enormous hardship.
You could buy Economy, but fly only the westbound (daytime).
Yes, it's expensive for Economy, but think of the clicks, and the avoided regrets!
Oh - is this the explanation - it's going to crash. And they claim on the insurance?
Or have they offered their services as a Sparafucile to someone putting their enemy on board?
Utterly ridiculous ideas, but then what is happening seems untterly ridicuous too.
I'd hoped to take the inaugural flight (given Glasgow is my "local" airport), but the timings are too close to a family trip to Spain on the 17th (and while my wife is supportive of my travels, the lack of any buffer in timings - even assuming I flew immediately back later on the 15th with BA/AA, the chance of something stopping me being home for an early flight on the 17th was too great to take).
I do agree that there's been a lot of hype around them starting out. Promises of revolutionary new cabins; appointment of design agencies; etc, yet it turns out they are "launching" with the same product the aircraft came with from China Southern, with a quick reupholster job, and some new carpets.
While James' wife hails from Glasgow, I'm not clear on the thinking of making their initial launch flights from GLA and MAN, if those aren't the routes they are planning to operate going forward (I believe it's always been Gatwick that's been touted as their preferred based of operations); and it's not likely to draw any serious travelers from London, so I'm expecting these initial flights to be mostly filled with AVGeeks and travel vloggers/YouTubers (such as myself) looking for some novel content - that and probably some media outlets and investors as well. Very strange approach they have taken, so time will tell if these are simply going to be one-off flights, or if it actually leads to something more substantial.
But they're not really off the ground. They're basically chartering a one off flight with hiFly. I mean, if I had the money I could call up hiFly and charter that exact same flight and aircraft for tomorrow. It doesn't mean I have a business plan to make this a sustainable business.
I suspect there are certain covenants in their loans or investments that if first flight doesn't occur by X date they must forfeit some of their money. And so they're spending some of their cash on a (sure to be) money-losing flight because it loses them less money than having to return an investment.