Since a solo flight by the Wright brothers on the shore of North Carolina more than a century ago, the size of airplanes has gone in one direction — up. But the era of ever larger jets, and the romantic idea of continent-hopping travel they inspired, came to an unofficial end with the announcement by Airbus Thursday that it plans to cease production of the A380, the largest passenger airliner ever built. An engineering marvel expansive enough for showers and sleekly designed bars, the planes hark back to the age when flying had glamour. The four engines are powerful enough to reach cruising altitude in roughly 15 minutes, all the while keeping noise to a tolerable hum. There are fan clubs for the A380 on both Twitter and Facebook. But for years, the jet has been far more popular with passengers than airlines. When it debuted in 2005, the A380 was a bet that the future of air travel was big planes flying between major hubs, followed by connectors to final destinations. Instead, the dominant trend became smaller planes and direct flights. Dropping $445m for a jet — the A380’s list price — that can carry more than 500 people made little economic sense, especially as budget airlines cropped up as competition. Story has detailed background and history.<br/>
general
Airbus’s decision to shut production of the A380 looks set to reignite a translatlantic trade row over mutual claims of illegal aircraft subsidies, even as Airbus implements a two-year plan to stop making the world’s largest airliner. The planemaker announced the shutdown on Thursday due to weak sales, eliminating a model at the heart of a record trade dispute between the EU and US over government support for Airbus and Boeing. After 15 years and thousands of pages of arguments, the two sides are locked in arbitration proceedings at the WTO to determine the amount of harm each has caused through support, a possible precursor to sanctions. The WTO’s appeals body last year said the EU had failed to remove subsidized government development loans for the world’s largest airliner, the A380, and Europe’s newest long-haul jet, the A350, causing losses for Boeing and US workers. Now, the EU is preparing to argue to the WTO that A380 subsidies no longer exist because the aircraft is being taken off the market, said a European source familiar with the case.<br/>
The US FAA on Thursday gave its approval to Vietnam’s air-safety system, which will allow the Southeast Asian country’s airlines to fly to the US as it seeks to bolster tourism. Vietnam’s national carrier is planning flights to California. The FAA gave Vietnam a Category 1 rating, meaning US reviewers found that the country adheres to UN standards for licensing pilots and overseeing airline operations and safety, the agency said. “The Category 1 status announced today is based on an August 2018 FAA assessment of the safety oversight provided by the Civil Aviation Administration of Vietnam,” the FAA said. The FAA hadn’t previously assessed Vietnam’s aviation regulation system. Vietnam Airlines for years has planned flights to the US West Coast, home to a large population of Vietnamese-Americans. The carrier is considering a Ho Chi Minh City-San Francisco flight to be its first US route, CE Duong Tri Thanh said in May.<br/>
A divided federal appeals court Thursday said American Muslims who landed on the “No-Fly List” because of their refusal to become government informants can sue FBI agents for damages, prompting dissents that said the decision was dangerous and defied US Supreme Court precedents. In a 7-3 vote, the 2nd US Circuit Court of Appeals in Manhattan refused to revisit its May 2018 decision by a three-judge panel allowing Muhammad Tanvir, Jameel Algibhah and Naveed Shinwari to seek monetary damages for being put on the list, despite no evidence they threatened airline or passenger safety. The plaintiffs, all US citizens or permanent residents who were born abroad, had sought damages under the federal Religious Freedom Restoration Act. They said their inclusion on the No-Fly List for refusing to spy on Muslim communities caused them to lose jobs, be unable to visit family and be stigmatised in their communities. None remains on the list. Story has background. <br/>