No American carriers ever went through with an order for the Airbus A380.
It had seemed as though the closest that the giant of the skies came to the US “N”
Register was from freighter orders later canceled by FedEx and UPS.
Despite this, there are now two A380s on the US aircraft registry, though it seems that
this won't be the case for long.
Let’s examine this peculiarity in today’s video…
In February, China Southern Airlines ferried two Airbus A380s out to Victorville California
in the Mojave Desert.
A couple of hours later, the two giant aircraft took off for a short hop across the desert
to Mojave Air and Space Port, around 47 nautical miles as the crow flies.
Both aircraft have since been re-registered in the United States.
The aircraft likely stopped in Victorville to complete immigration and customs formalities.
That’s because Mojave Air and Space Port is not listed as a port of entry by US customs
and border protection.
With the recent re-registration of the A380s, it marks the first time that the giant of
the skies has been registered in the United States.
Both jets came from China Southern Airlines.
While China Southern was the only airline to continue operating the Airbus A380 throughout
the pandemic, it seems as though the type's time is now up.
The two jets are both around 11 years old.
The first is the 11.17-year-old MSN 31.
This jet had first flown on March 3rd, 2011.
This aircraft was registered as B-6136 during its time with the Chinese carrier.
Now registered as N291JM, the aircraft completed 26,983 flight hours across 4,668 flight cycles.
The other aircraft, MSN 36, first flew on May 6th, 2011, making it roughly 11 years
old.
It was registered as B-6137 and clocked 27,876 flight hours across 4,595 flight cycles.
This aircraft has now been registered as N296JM.
Both aircraft could seat 506 passengers across three classes while in service.
Sadly, it seems as though it's the end of the line for these jets.
The re-registration in the United States appears to be more to do with the ownership of the
aircraft than anything else.
Ch-aviation reports that both jets are due to be scrapped, suggesting that they will
never fly with their new US registration.
Both aircraft are now listed as being owned by Jet Midwest.
While the firm does offer aircraft for sale and lease, it currently has one Boeing 777-200ER
listed.
The company describes itself as follows, Since 1997, we have acquired, disassembled,
sold, and leased over 300 aircraft, including the Boeing 757, 767, Fokker F100, and MD80
series.
Given the current market situation, it is incredibly unlikely that these A380s will
find second hand homes in one piece.
Right now there are at least four more Air France A380s listed for sale and lease, which
haven't found a home in over a year on the market.
Thus, it seems as though they will be the latest to meet a fate so far experienced by
a handful of A380s: Being parted out and recycled.
Would you have liked to see a US airline operating the a380?
Let us know what you think in
the comments!