Qantas will begin retiring its 10 Airbus A380s from 2028, bringing forward a previous timetable that pointed to about 2032. The Australian carrier tied the move to rising maintenance and operating costs for the out-of-production superjumbo and growing confidence in the delivery schedule for replacement widebody jets, led by Airbus A350-1000s and Boeing 787s.
The plan was unveiled alongside Qantas’s annual results and wider fleet update, with chief executive Vanessa Hudson framing it as part of a broader renewal strategy. Qantas is also in talks with Airbus and Boeing over converting around 20 aircraft options into firm orders from 2030, which would help replace capacity as the A380 fleet is withdrawn.
The revised timing underlines the shrinking role of the A380 in long-haul networks more than two decades after its launch and several years after Airbus ended production. Qantas expects the phaseout to reduce cash outflows by avoiding heavier maintenance spending on the ageing four-engine aircraft, while shifting further towards more efficient twin-engine widebodies.