Asiong Aksaya: Alive & Kicking in the Airbus A380
Mike Banos
February 24, 2006
Asiong Aksaya was a creation of the late dean of Philippine cartoonists Larry Alcala. Appearing in almost all Philippine dailies and magazines from 1979-84 at the height of the energy crisis, Asiong Aksaya (which means wasteful in Pilipino) embodied the profligate , reckless spendthrift Filipino consumer at his worst, and became a Pinoy byword for consumer excesses.
Now we see Asiong Aksaya resurrected in the West with the Airbus A380. Like the concepts that launched Big Mac, the Model T Ford, and now the world's largest passenger jet in the Airbus A380, Western economics persists in insisting on the fallacy that more is cheaper and bigger is more economical.
Proof that this malaise is alive and well is the recent announcement of Airbus officials that the Airbus A380 has attracted interest from private individuals seeking a new luxurious travel experience.
Wikpedia, the online encyclopedia, says: "The 555-seat, double deck Airbus A380 is the most ambitious civil aircraft program yet. When it enters service in March 2006, the A380 will be the world's largest airliner, easily eclipsing Boeing's 747, which was the largest for 35 years."
John Leahy, Airbus chief operating officer for customers, said there have been inquiries from individual operators who want to use the double-decker super jumbo for private flights. Some erstwhile 747 airliners have been sold for private flights though Airbus officials admit it's not a very big market.
The A380 towers 24.1 meters (79 feet 1 inches) with a wingspan of 79.8 meters (261 ft 10 in) and stretches 73 meters (239 ft 6 in) or three-quarters the length of a soccer field. It offers nearly half again as much floor space as the 747, with potential room for new amenities like casinos, bars, shops or libraries. It can carry a maximum of 850 passengers in one class or 1,528 tons of cargo at 560 mph for a maximum range of 15,000 kilometers (8,000 nautical miles) at a service ceiling of 13,100 meters (43,000 feet).
Although the plane has a list price of $292 million, it has already secured 159 firm orders from 16 airlines and freight companies, with dozens more on option. Wow! For that amount alone we can already launch a regional airline in the Philippines!
It's this idea of using the A380 for private flights that really gets my craw. The rationale behind the 600-seat airliner concept was it would carry more passengers for the same amount of fuel consumed, compared to say, a B747. For the record, a fully loaded A380 can carry up to 850 passengers, easily double the 416 passengers of the largest B747 variant, the B747-400. Using the new plane for private flights flushes that intrinsic raison d'etre down its chemical toilets.
The official A380 website crows that "a goal of the A380 program from the start has been to offer double-digit improvements in fuel burn and operating costs when compared with today's largest commercial aircraft."
Airbus claims that despite its ability to carry 35 per cent more passengers than its competitor, the A380 burns 12 per cent less fuel per seat " reducing operating costs and minimizing its effects on the environment at the same time through fewer emissions. The A380 burns fuel per passenger at a rate comparable to that of an economical family car."
With a maximum fuel load of 352,000 liters, the A380 has enough fuel on a single flight to top off 4,400 cars (assuming 80 liters per car). With an average of four passengers a car, that same fuel can move 17,600 people a maximum of 1,200 kilometers (assuming an optimistic 15 kilometers per liter) at a cost of 3.75 per person per kilometer. In contrast, the A380 in standard livery can deliver 555 people a maximum of 15,000 kilometers at a cost of only .04 liters per person per kilometer! Or figuring it out another way, the cars using the same amount of fuel can move .07 people per kilometer compared to an astounding 27.03 persons per kilometer for the A380!
With figures like this, Airbus proudly crows that the A380 has the "potential"? to increase an operator's return by as much as 35%. Its increased capacity and longer range provide airlines with significantly more seat-miles on every flight. Thanks to the incorporation of the latest advances in structures, materials, aerodynamics, systems and engine design, the A380 will provide a direct operating cost per seat which is 15-20 per cent lower than the 747-400.
Wikpedia adds: "With 49% more floor space and only 35% more seating than the previous largest aircraft, Airbus is ensuring wider seats and aisles for more passenger comfort. Using the most advanced technologies, the A380 is also designed to have 10-15% more range, lower fuel burn and emissions, and less noise."
"And because Airbus has maximized the boarding and deplaning process by cutting out choke points, the significantly shorter turn-round time for airport processing of an A380 allows schedules to be kept tight and extra flights flown."
Given the history of the airline industry, the A380 will significantly expand the improvements that the 747 made ?more seats and lower seat-distance costs - while providing wider seats and better amenities. With 555 passengers, the A380 represents a 35% increase over the 747-400 in standard three-class configuration, along with a nearly 50% larger cabin volume - meaning much more space per passenger."
Okay, fine so far. But note what happens when the A380 will be used for private flights or worse, as an executive jet : all those savings from its 10-15% "increased efficiency"? from increased range, lower fuel burn, emissions and noise goes flying out of its exhaust pipes. Wave goodbye to that 15-20% savings in direct operating costs!
The bright boys who inevitably have an answer for all questions like this one will always tell you the economics for operating the A380 as an executive jet or for private flights is figured differently from one used as a commercial airliner. Sure, manure! But it doesn't change the fact that its $292 million unit cost would only benefit a select few, putting increased pressure on our dwindling natural resources and our overstressed environment.
That ain't all folks! France, Germany, Spain and the U.K. anted up no less than 10 billion+ euro or $13 billion for the 10-year aircraft program. Apart from prime contractors in the four partner countries, components for the A380 airframe are also manufactured by industrial partners in 12 countries: Australia, Austria, Belgium, Finland, Italy, Japan, South Korea, Malaysia, Netherlands, Sweden, Switzerland and the United States. Imagine all that money and all those people working for 10 years for the benefit of a select few!
Initial publicity stressed the A380's space and comfort, allowing for relaxation areas, bars, duty free shops and even casinos. Similar items were proposed in the past when large aircraft were announced, but thankfully airlines have always opted for more seats to lower ticket costs. We're praying hard they keep thinking that way.
INDNJC-
Now we see Asiong Aksaya resurrected in the West with the Airbus A380. Like the concepts that launched Big Mac, the Model T Ford, and now the world's largest passenger jet in the Airbus A380, Western economics persists in insisting on the fallacy that more is cheaper and bigger is more economical.
Proof that this malaise is alive and well is the recent announcement of Airbus officials that the Airbus A380 has attracted interest from private individuals seeking a new luxurious travel experience.
Wikpedia, the online encyclopedia, says: "The 555-seat, double deck Airbus A380 is the most ambitious civil aircraft program yet. When it enters service in March 2006, the A380 will be the world's largest airliner, easily eclipsing Boeing's 747, which was the largest for 35 years."
John Leahy, Airbus chief operating officer for customers, said there have been inquiries from individual operators who want to use the double-decker super jumbo for private flights. Some erstwhile 747 airliners have been sold for private flights though Airbus officials admit it's not a very big market.
The A380 towers 24.1 meters (79 feet 1 inches) with a wingspan of 79.8 meters (261 ft 10 in) and stretches 73 meters (239 ft 6 in) or three-quarters the length of a soccer field. It offers nearly half again as much floor space as the 747, with potential room for new amenities like casinos, bars, shops or libraries. It can carry a maximum of 850 passengers in one class or 1,528 tons of cargo at 560 mph for a maximum range of 15,000 kilometers (8,000 nautical miles) at a service ceiling of 13,100 meters (43,000 feet).
Although the plane has a list price of $292 million, it has already secured 159 firm orders from 16 airlines and freight companies, with dozens more on option. Wow! For that amount alone we can already launch a regional airline in the Philippines!
It's this idea of using the A380 for private flights that really gets my craw. The rationale behind the 600-seat airliner concept was it would carry more passengers for the same amount of fuel consumed, compared to say, a B747. For the record, a fully loaded A380 can carry up to 850 passengers, easily double the 416 passengers of the largest B747 variant, the B747-400. Using the new plane for private flights flushes that intrinsic raison d'etre down its chemical toilets.
The official A380 website crows that "a goal of the A380 program from the start has been to offer double-digit improvements in fuel burn and operating costs when compared with today's largest commercial aircraft."
Airbus claims that despite its ability to carry 35 per cent more passengers than its competitor, the A380 burns 12 per cent less fuel per seat " reducing operating costs and minimizing its effects on the environment at the same time through fewer emissions. The A380 burns fuel per passenger at a rate comparable to that of an economical family car."
With a maximum fuel load of 352,000 liters, the A380 has enough fuel on a single flight to top off 4,400 cars (assuming 80 liters per car). With an average of four passengers a car, that same fuel can move 17,600 people a maximum of 1,200 kilometers (assuming an optimistic 15 kilometers per liter) at a cost of 3.75 per person per kilometer. In contrast, the A380 in standard livery can deliver 555 people a maximum of 15,000 kilometers at a cost of only .04 liters per person per kilometer! Or figuring it out another way, the cars using the same amount of fuel can move .07 people per kilometer compared to an astounding 27.03 persons per kilometer for the A380!
With figures like this, Airbus proudly crows that the A380 has the "potential"? to increase an operator's return by as much as 35%. Its increased capacity and longer range provide airlines with significantly more seat-miles on every flight. Thanks to the incorporation of the latest advances in structures, materials, aerodynamics, systems and engine design, the A380 will provide a direct operating cost per seat which is 15-20 per cent lower than the 747-400.
Wikpedia adds: "With 49% more floor space and only 35% more seating than the previous largest aircraft, Airbus is ensuring wider seats and aisles for more passenger comfort. Using the most advanced technologies, the A380 is also designed to have 10-15% more range, lower fuel burn and emissions, and less noise."
"And because Airbus has maximized the boarding and deplaning process by cutting out choke points, the significantly shorter turn-round time for airport processing of an A380 allows schedules to be kept tight and extra flights flown."
Given the history of the airline industry, the A380 will significantly expand the improvements that the 747 made ?more seats and lower seat-distance costs - while providing wider seats and better amenities. With 555 passengers, the A380 represents a 35% increase over the 747-400 in standard three-class configuration, along with a nearly 50% larger cabin volume - meaning much more space per passenger."
Okay, fine so far. But note what happens when the A380 will be used for private flights or worse, as an executive jet : all those savings from its 10-15% "increased efficiency"? from increased range, lower fuel burn, emissions and noise goes flying out of its exhaust pipes. Wave goodbye to that 15-20% savings in direct operating costs!
The bright boys who inevitably have an answer for all questions like this one will always tell you the economics for operating the A380 as an executive jet or for private flights is figured differently from one used as a commercial airliner. Sure, manure! But it doesn't change the fact that its $292 million unit cost would only benefit a select few, putting increased pressure on our dwindling natural resources and our overstressed environment.
That ain't all folks! France, Germany, Spain and the U.K. anted up no less than 10 billion+ euro or $13 billion for the 10-year aircraft program. Apart from prime contractors in the four partner countries, components for the A380 airframe are also manufactured by industrial partners in 12 countries: Australia, Austria, Belgium, Finland, Italy, Japan, South Korea, Malaysia, Netherlands, Sweden, Switzerland and the United States. Imagine all that money and all those people working for 10 years for the benefit of a select few!
Initial publicity stressed the A380's space and comfort, allowing for relaxation areas, bars, duty free shops and even casinos. Similar items were proposed in the past when large aircraft were announced, but thankfully airlines have always opted for more seats to lower ticket costs. We're praying hard they keep thinking that way.
INDNJC-
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