Airbus may ditch A380's grand staircase as sales tumble

Airbus is considering doing away with one of the hallmarks of its A380 superjumbo, a "grand staircase" echoing the era of cruise ships, as it looks to revive sales of the airliner, industry sources said. The idea of a slimmed down staircase, as well as adding fuel-saving wingtips, is aimed at lowering the huge double-decker's operating costs and boosting its fuel efficiency. The provisionally dubbed A380-Plus makeover would add 40-50 seats to increase the standard interior's capacity to more than 600 seats which would help airlines reduce their costs per passenger. To make room for those extra passengers, the A380 would do away with the double staircase at the front of the plane in favour of something more compact. The narrower spiral staircase at the back would also be modified. <br/>