Airbus Develops “New Forward Stairs” Option for A380

Airbus has developed a “New Forward Stairs” (NFS) option for the Airbus A380.

The NFS involves relocation of the forward stair from Door 1 to Door 2, and combining the entrance of the NFS to the upper deck (going up), with the adjacent staircase to the lower-deck crew-rest (going down). The NFS would make room for up to 20 additional passengers.

Dr. Kiran Rao, EVP of Strategy and Marketing at Airbus Commercial Aircraft said, “Continuous improvement of our products is our daily work. This new package for our A380 customers is a smart way to meet airline needs while improving the A380 economics with additional revenues and innovating in passenger comfort.”

With this latest proposal of the NFS option, the package of new cabin enablers for the A380 now comprises the following:

Combined Crew-Rest Compartment (CCRC)

For the CCRC, the existing flight-crew-rest (behind the cockpit in the mezzanine area at Door 1) is moved down and combined with the cabin crew rest on the lower deck. This innovation frees space for three extra Premium-Economy passengers at the front of the main-deck.

3-5-3 Economy Class Layout on Main Deck

Airbus is able to maintain an 18-inch seat width while offering airlines an 11-abreast Economy Class on the main-deck in a ‘3-5-3’ configuration. This enables an increase in capacity of 23 seats.

New Aft-Galley Stair Module (AGSM)

The AGSM involves the redesign of the rear-stair from a spiral agreement to a straight/square one. On the main-deck, this allows valuable storage volume for galley modules. Overall the AGSM provides space for 14 more revenue passengers plus two extra food trolleys.

Upper Deck Sidewall Stowage Removal

The option to remove the sidewall stowages on the upper deck increases the wall-to-wall cabin width at foot-rest height – which makes space for up to 10 more business class seats / beds when an angled herring-bone arrangement is used.

Nine-Abreast Premium Economy on Main Deck

The A380’s generous main-deck cross section is allowing seat manufacturers to optimise their Premium Economy (PE) seat designs. A nine-abreast layout enables 11 more PE seats than in an eight-abreast layout.

“Only the A380 has the economies of scale and development potential to efficiently solve the problem of increasing congestion at large airports while providing the best comfort for passengers. The aircraft can also serve fast growing markets and airlines regional airports, so we are adapting the aircraft to meet evolving market needs,” Dr. Rao added.

497 passengers is the airline’s average capacity of the A380s currently in operation today. With all these A380 cabin enablers, the A380 seat count would move from 497 to 575 in four classes, generating significantly more revenue for airlines.

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