When Will Emirates Retire Airbus A380 Fleet? 2040 Is The Plan…

When you think of Emirates, the Airbus A380 may be the first thing that comes to mind. And when you think of the Airbus A380, Emirates might be the first thing that comes to mind. Emirates helped turn Dubai into the global transit hub that it is today, and the A380 is the plane that really enabled Emirates to do that. For the Dubai-based carrier, the A380 is more than just another aircraft.

With that in mind, I want to take a look at Emirates’ current retirement plans for the whale jet, as we’ve just seen another timeline shared.

Emirates plans to fly Airbus A380 until 2040

Emirates is the only airline in the world that has managed to make the Airbus A380 a huge success, as the airline was able to scale its A380 operations in a way that no other airline did. Emirates has around 120 A380s in its fleet, representing roughly half of the world’s total A380 deliveries. For some airlines, the A380 offered too much capacity, while for Emirates, the airline can’t get enough of the plane.

Unfortunately for Emirates (and us passengers), the days of the Airbus A380 are numbered. Airbus stopped A380 production in 2021, as there weren’t sufficient orders to keep production going. As much as Emirates could have almost kept the A380 program alive, the airline also realized it didn’t make sense to keep investing in an aircraft that would eventually become obsolete, as aircraft manufacturers invest in other aircraft technology instead.

So, what’s the latest on the retirement of the Airbus A380? This week, Emirates President Tim Clark has stated that the airline intends to fly the A380 until around 2040. This would be roughly 20 years from when the newest A380 was delivered to the airline, in 2021.

At one point, Emirates’ plan was to retire these planes as of the mid-2030s, so the longer timeline is something that many travelers will appreciate. To be clear, that doesn’t mean some A380s won’t be retired before then.

Quite to the contrary, the plan is for many A380s to start to be retired around the early to mid 2030s, and then they’ll be used for parts, to allow the remaining A380 fleet to keep flying. Emirates is still very much investing in its Airbus A380s, as these planes are being overhauled with refreshed cabins, including a new premium economy product. Clark even hints at a refreshed first class cabin on these jets.

I think it’s also worth mentioning that this timeline is very much subject to change. Just as coronavirus changed the airline industry in many ways, any major event that impacts global demand could cause Emirates to move forward A380 retirements. While 2040 is the goal as of now, if there’s a major economic downturn in the years prior to that, you can bet that those planes will be retired early.

How Emirates will replace its Airbus A380 fleet

The Airbus A380 is by far the largest passenger aircraft in the world, so it goes without saying that it’ll take a lot of frames to replace Emirates’ fleet of A380s. Emirates has roughly 250 aircraft at the moment, split almost evenly between Airbus A380s and Boeing 777s, in addition to a handful of Airbus A350s, which the airline is just starting to take delivery of.

Eventually A380s and existing 777s will be retired, and that’s why Emirates has over 300 jets on order:

• Emirates has 65 Airbus A350-900s on order, which are in the process of being delivered, and should all join the fleet by 2028
• Emirates has 35 Boeing 787s on order, with 20 being for the 787-8 and 15 being for the 787-10, though there’s no delivery timeline for these planes, and one wonders if this is a placeholder order
• Emirates has 205 Boeing 777Xs on order, with 35 being for the 777-8 and 170 being for the 777-9, and they’re expected to be delivered as of 2026, though that’s contingent on the 777X getting certified

Some may wonder why the Airbus A350-1000 isn’t in Emirates’ fleet plans, given that it’s Airbus’ largest aircraft that’s currently in production. It’s because Clark has been critical of the durability of the plane’s Rolls-Royce engines, so he doesn’t see it as a great fit.

Will Emirates be the same without the Airbus A380?

There’s no denying that Emirates has a huge halo effect from the Airbus A380. When people think of Emirates, they almost always think of the A380, and in particular the business class bar and first class shower. Even if someone never travels in a premium cabin, these are two instantly recognizable signature amenities of Emirates.

Arguably the A380’s reputation has allowed Emirates to underinvest in other premium products. For example, Emirates’ Boeing 777 business class has historically been downright subpar, with seven angled seats per row (though a new product is finally being rolled out). While the A380’s amenities might be style over substance, I truly do believe that they give people the impression that Emirates is world class across the board, and causes people to overlook other shortcomings.

Without the Airbus A380, will Emirates maintain the same reputation? The A380 just has some extra real estate for airlines to play with, which you won’t find on other aircraft. Could we still see Emirates introduce an onboard bar on Boeing 777Xs, even if it comes with a bigger opportunity cost?

Honestly, it’s just kind of hard to imagine Emirates without the A380, because it’s such a core part of the brand’s experience.

Bottom line

Emirates’ current plan is to continue flying the Airbus A380 until around 2040, an extension of a timeline shared several years back, which had the planes all being retired by the mid-2030s. I’m always happy to see these whale jets sticking around longer, so I’d consider that to be great news.

This obviously remains subject to change, as a shift in global demand could cause Emirates to change that timeline. Emirates has lots of other aircraft on order to eventually replace the A380 (with more orders on the way). Still, one has to wonder what Emirates will be like without the A380.

What’s your take on Emirates eventually retiring the A380? Can you imagine the airline without the A380?