- A380 winglet left in building.
- A380 wing hit building in Paris.
- The A380 winglet is left behind.
- Aerial shot from damaged wing. Photo by Reuters.
- A Korean Air A380 was used instead. Photo by apgphoto/Flight Global.
- Side shot of the damage on the Airbus A380. Photo by Niek van der Zande.
Click any photo for larger version. Photos by Niek van der Zande, via FlightBlogger and Reuters.
Airbus flew a double-decker Airbus A380 to the 2011 Paris Airshow to put on display and to hopefully attract additional customers. However, while taxiing, the world’s largest airliner’s wing clipped a building ripping off the right winglet and putting the aircraft out of service and unable to fly.
Luckily an A380 owned by Korean Air came to the rescue and flew one of their A380s t0 the Paris Air Show. Being the largest airliner has its benefits and challenges — this is not the first time the A380s size has been an issue. Recently, an Air France A380 struck the tail of a CRJ 700, causing it to spin out.
A spokesperson for Airbus told AirlineReporter.com that the A380, “took the taxiway it was instructed by ground control to take.”