A380 landing at Dulles

Found this video of a beautiful night landing of the A380 at Washington Dulles International earlier this week.

A380 promo video by Oliver Braun

YouTube suggested this video as related to the ones we have been uploading. I have to say that the graphics are quite amazing, very realistic indeed!

A380 safety video

Director of Customer Relations and Marketing Marcus Casey provided us with this clip of the A380 safety video, captured during its demo flight over Manhattan on March 21.

Inside day two at JFK

Wednesday was a much longer day than Monday. I was invited to an interior tour at Hangar 19 at 13:00 and nearly got lost on the way. Inside the hangar, a loungy tent with sofas, refreshments, and a coat check provided a comfortable spot to mingle among media and Airbus/Lufthansa execs. Many of my colleagues provided support at the affair, checking people in and giving out tour boarding passes.

Tours groups were about seven people in size, and Airbus VP Communications Clay McConnell escorted each group to the aircraft outside. Along the way he gave an informative chat, which included already known facts like the craft's height, wingspan, and engine thrust. However, he also pointed out that the plane is number 007 and that the tailsign ends in "JB" for James Bond. Additionally it can travel at 85% of the speed of sound - very impressive given its rave reviews for operating quietly, inside and out.

Clay explained that this aircraft is designed to test cabin systems, which means that its appointments were not standardized throughout; rather many different cabin options were on display. For instance, in some sections the seating configuration was 3-4-3 like the 747, and in others it was 2-4-2 like the A340. Different sections of the Economy Class cabin boasted varying color schemes and upholstery, and overhead bin sizes varied as well. The Business Class section was on the upper deck, while Lufthansa has already discussed configuring the upper deck for First Class instead.

I enjoyed Clay's introduction so much that after the interior tour, I asked him if he would mind if I recorded it for the blog. He graciously agreed (thanks, Clay :) I will update this post on Monday with the video.

Update: here is the intro video, as promised.

How an A380 is built

This video clip distills the contents of the two-hour documentary I mentioned earlier into a seven-minute assembly.

A380 takeoff cam

One of the coolest things about the A380 that I learned on Monday is the system of three cameras which are attached to the outside of the aircraft. There is a camera on the tail, one under the belly, and a third near the cockpit. The best part is that the camera views are accessible through the inflight entertainment system.

My new friend Kevin Paige recorded this video of the takeoff from Frankfurt on Monday. Even though he didn't have a window seat, he always had a great view.

A380 coverage on the Early Show

While working crowd control at the terminal today I met for the first time one of our account managers from Boston, Kevin Paige. We had a long discussion about his experience on board, which he really enjoyed. He also was interviewed by the Early Show when he arrived on Monday and posted the video coverage already.

First impression A380 at JFK

The best and most unexpected thing on the ground

Lufthansa is fond of branded goodies, which show up at every event we have ever had. Often they are wearable and sometimes they even have blinky LED lights in them. In the past I have avoided these trinkets, but the transparent planes bearing our logo which were passed out today were attractive even to me.

Apparently Lufthansa ordered 1,000 blinky planes, more than twice the number of passengers on board the A380 today. After five boxes disappeared in the span of about an hour and a half, a colleague and I gave up our own because the Lufthansa crew wanted them too, and we were short a few. My friend Antonia really worked the crowd waiting outside customs, spotting all the children and approaching their parents to tempt them with the toys.

The blinky planes have three settings: steady on, slow blink, and alarming (the latter made my heart race). The still photo just didn't capture the effect, so I also got it on video. (It's the bit that looks like electric jello.)

The Today Show: Special report on A380 visit

The Today Show just broadcasted a report (see the video) on todays flight from Frankfurt to New York. One of their reporters is acutally on the plane right now.

What we’ll miss out

Those people like me, a bloody intern at Lufthansa’s NYC office, that will not have the opportunity to join the lucky crowd flying on Monday from Frankfurt, Germany to JFK should have a look at the following video to get an impression of what we’ll miss out. Although, the cabin design and seats of the MSN007 the A380 aircraft used for the Lufthansa Route Proving Program are actually from Airbus, 23 cabin crew members of Lufthansa will provide full on-board service to mostly Airbus and Lufthansa employees in addition to some press people and guests that are among the 500 passengers. The video is from September’s first passenger flight (Early Long Flights).