Summary
- The first Emirates Airbus A380 was scrapped and turned into keyrings by Falcon Aircraft Recycling, with over 23,500 tags made.
- The process involved deconstructing the jet at Dubai World Central Airport, engraving each tag with details, and packaging them with certificates of authenticity.
- The tags are being sold on Aviationtag’s website for €59.95 ($62.94), with a portion of each sale going towards the Emirates Foundation to support disadvantaged children.
A couple of weeks ago, we reported that the first Emirates Airbus A380 had been scrapped and turned into keyrings by Falcon Aircraft Recycling in Dubai and were now on sale at Aviationtag. Now, we have been given a little bit of an insight into how the giant aircraft was turned into keyring-sized tags.
It’s common for aircraft to be dismantled at the end of their lives, and it is possible to recycle around 90% of an Airbus A380. However, recycling isn’t the only option. Now, more and more aircraft are seeing parts resold to avgeeks around the world.
Scrapping Emirate’s 1st Airbus A380
The process to scrap the 1st Emirates Airbus A380 already started around two years ago at the Dubai World Central Airport (DWC), home of the biennial Dubai Airshow. At the time, Emirates’ Chief Operating Officer shared photos of the jet being deconstructed via his Instagram page.
Falcon Aircraft Recycling worked with Emirates to scrap the giant and was already selling pieces of the jet at the 2021 Air Show. They first took parts of the fuselage, cut into similar-sized chunks, and punched roughly 13 to 21 identical tags from each. Back in November 2021, Andrew Tonks, Director of Falcon Aircraft Recycling, told Sam Chui,
“This is our most ambitious project to date, which will see the first deconstruction of an A380 outside of Europe. Approximately 190 tonnes of various metals, plastics, carbon fiber composites and other materials will be removed from the aircraft and passed on for recycling or repurposing via our upcycling program”
Photo: Aviationtag via LinkedIn
Once each of the tags had been removed from the fuselage panel, they were sent to a laser engraving machine, where the details of the specific tag were etched into the skin. This was likely a time-consuming process, as over 23,500 tags were made.
Photo: Aviationtag via YouTube
Once the tags were removed from the laser engraver, they were cleaned with liquid and a cloth.
Photo: Aviationtag via YouTube
The final step saw ink dropped onto the tag and then rubbed into the laser-engraved notches. One final step saw the tags cleaned again before they were matched with their certificates of authenticity and packaged in boxes.
Photo: Aviationtag via YouTube
A6-EDA is the 5th Airbus A380 to have featured in the Aviationtag store and the first from Emirates. The other aircraft were 9V-SKA, 9V-SKB, 9V-SKD, and 9V-SKE, all former Singapore Airlines Airbus A380s.
For a good cause
The tags are retailing on Aviationtag’s website for €59.95 ($62.94). While this may seem slightly pricy compared to the site’s other tags, it is for a good cause, with a portion of each sale going toward the Emirates Foundation. The Emirates Foundation works to help disadvantaged children with a focus on delivering a safe home, healthcare, and education for those most in need in 9 countries across the world, from Africa and Asia to South America and even within the UAE.
Did you realize so much work went into turning an Airbus A380 into keyrings? Let us know what you think and why in the comments!
Sources: Aviationtag, Sam Chui