The Airbus A380 is the heaviest aircraft in the world. How do you get one going after it's spent three years parked in an American desert?
Add articles to your saved list and come back to them any time.When thousands of long-haul aircraft across the globe were grounded at the onset of the COVID pandemic in 2020, airlines were faced with the question of where to store them.
Aircraft boneyards have stored retired and damaged planes since the end of the Second World War and are pivotal to keeping the industry afloat, but the COVID-19 pandemic was the first time the world’s deserts were tested by so many simultaneously. The airline’s executive manager of engineering, Scott McConnell, said 100 of his engineers found themselves working through extreme weather – ranging from snow and icy cold storms to unforgiving heat. The only constant was the dust that enveloped everything.“The entire aircraft is wrapped to protect it from moisture, dust and insects. Every opening, panel and crack is taped up – and that’s just the outside. There’s plastic covering everything from the carpets to the seats inside.
The planes then went through about 1000 additional hours of maintenance testing before returning to service.When global lockdowns eased, cash-strapped airlines were faced with millions of people who’d been deprived of travel for the better part of two years and weren’t prepared to tolerate further delays.
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