First A380 for Japan’s Skymark Airlines Makes Its Maiden Flight

Skymark Airlines’ first A380 has successfully made its maiden flight, following completion of airframe assembly and system tests in Toulouse.

On April 8, 2014, Skymark Airlines’ first Airbus A380 flew from Toulouse Blagnac Airport ‒ Toulouse, in southern France, is where the Airbus widebody final-assembly lines are located ‒ to the manufacturer’s completion facility at Finkenwerder Airfield near Hamburg.

Skymark Airlines’ first A380 takes off from Toulouse Blagnac Airport in southern France for its maiden flight, to the Airbus completion facility at Finkenwerder Airfield near Hamburg

The Japanese carrier’s first A380 will now enter the next phase of production, covering cabin installation and painting at Finkenwerder.

Skymark Airlines will become the first A380 operator in Japan when it takes delivery of its first aircraft later this year. The airline has six A380s on order.

Headquartered at Tokyo Haneda Airport, Skymark Airlines will deploy its A380s on international trunk routes.

By mid-2014 Skymark Airlines had ordered six Airbus A380s. It was the first airline in Japan to order the superjumbo passenger jet

The airline plans use its A380s particularly for transpacific routes from Narita International Airport near Tokyo to destinations in the U.S.

It will operate its A380s with highly comfortable, two-class cabin configurations offering 114 business class and 280 premium economy seats.

Skymark’s 394-seat seat layout for the A380 will represent the lowest-density seat configuration yet chosen by an airline customer for the A380.

The first Airbus A380 destined for Japanese customer Skymark Airlines performed its first flight on April 8, 2014

The airline also operates and has on order a total of nine Airbus A330-300 widebodies for operation on medium-to-long-haul routes.

Skymark Airlines operates its A330-300s in single-class, 271-seat all-premium economy configuration.

It also has a short-to-medium-haul fleet of 31 Boeing 737-800 single-aisle jets.

Skymark operates these aircraft in single-class, 177-seat all-economy cabin configuration.