Summary
- The world’s shortest Airbus A380 service in October is by Asiana between Seoul Incheon and Tokyo Narita.
- The five shortest flights cover three times less distance than the average A380 flight.
- Since the A380’s first commercial flight 16 years ago, the record shortest scheduled service was between Singapore and Kuala Lumpur.
Ten carriers use the Airbus A380: All Nippon, Asiana, British Airways, Emirates, Etihad Airways, Korean Air, Lufthansa, Qantas, Qatar Airways, and Singapore Airlines. They have about 90 routes in October, covering an average distance of 4,032 miles (6,489 km), less than scheduled Boeing 747 passenger flights. Emirates’ Dubai-Auckland is the longest non-stop A380 service, and Qantas’ Sydney-Singapore-London Heathrow is the longest one-stop. But what about the world’s shortest A380 flights?
The shortest A380 flights: October
South Korea’s Asiana leads the pack between Seoul Incheon and Tokyo Narita. The carrier has six A380s (not all are active) with 495 seats in the same three-class config. It has much history using the type in this short but highly demanded market.
Photo: Vincenzo Pace/Simple Flying
Asiana last used the double-decker on the route in July 2023, and it returned on October 1st, replacing the 747-400 and A350-900, depending on the day. Running daily, OZ102 leaves Seoul at 09:00 and arrives in Japan at 11:20. Returning, OZ101 departs at 13:20 and returns at 15:50.
|
Rank |
Miles (km) |
Max block time* |
Route |
Airline |
A380 flights |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
1 |
783 (1,260) |
2h 30m |
Seoul Incheon-Tokyo Narita |
Asiana |
Daily |
|
2 |
907 (1,460) |
2h 35m |
Seoul Incheon-Taipei |
Korean Air |
Daily until October 28th |
|
3 |
1,049 (1,688) |
3h 15m |
Bangkok-Hong Kong** |
Emirates |
Daily |
|
4 |
1,057 (1,701) |
3h 20m |
Dubai-Jeddah |
Emirates |
Triple daily |
|
5 |
1,198 (1,928) |
3h 5m |
Dubai-Mumbai |
Emirates |
Daily |
|
* Either direction, any day in Oct |
** Begins/ends in Dubai |
A380… or A220-300
I particularly like the second shortest: Korean Air from Seoul to Taipei. The SkyTeam member will use multiple aircraft in October, from three-class but low-density 407-seat A380 (its largest-capacity equipment) to the 140-seat, all-economy A220-300 (beaten only by the 136-seat 737-800).
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Korean Air doesn’t sell its first class suites on this short service, and it is unclear if those in business (what it called Prestige class) will be allowed to use the suites.
Photo: Philip Pilosian/Shutterstock
Korean Air typically has a double daily Taipei service in October. While it varies, the A380 and A220 will be used on many days, providing a nice extreme contrast generally within the Airbus family.
They are scheduled as follows, with all times local. Note that, despite 267 extra seats (so a maximum of 534 in total to offload and board), the A380 has only a five-minute additional turn time in Taiwan:
- Seoul-Taipei: KE185, 10:35-12:10 (A380); KE187, 16:05-17:45 (A220)
- Taipei-Seoul: KE186, 13:25-18:00 (A380); KE188, 18:55-22:35 (A220)
The previous shortest…
Using OAG to examine all A380 routes since the type’s first commercial service in 2007 reveals that the shortest regular service was between Singapore and Kuala Lumpur, a mere 184 miles (296 km).
Operated daily by Singapore Airlines’ 471-seat aircraft, it existed for crew training and re-familiarization ahead of the return of long-haul flying. It ran in November 2021 and into early December and had a typical flight time of 40 minutes.
Photo: Vincenzo Pace/Simple Flying
It was similar to Air France between Paris CDG and London Heathrow. It performed 80 roundtrip flights using its withdrawn 538-seaters in summer 2010. I was pleased to have flown it and was upgraded to first class for the 35-minute trip.
What is the shortest A380 service you’ve been on? Let us know in the comments.
Sources of information: OAG, Google Flights, airline websites, ch-aviation.com, Flightradar24.com