Journalist – Aaron is an aviation and travel journalist with 14 years of experience in the travel and tourism industry. His background spans airport operations, aviation infrastructure, and travel consulting, having worked with global organizations across New Zealand, Europe, and North America. Combining industry expertise with firsthand travel experience across more than 52 countries and five continents, Aaron covers airlines, airports, aviation policy, and the wider travel sector. He is based in Canterbury, New Zealand. His work has been published in Simple Flying and featured by MSN, SAM CHUI Aviation & Travel, EIN News, Pakistan Defence, and Climate Depot.
Australia’s second busiest international gateway, Melbourne Airport (MEL) will see an increase of around 32% more Airbus A380 services this coming Southern Hemisphere summer season. Dubai-based Emirates operates two daily double-decker services from its home at Dubai International Airport (DXB), alongside a daily Singapore Airlines superjumbo service from Singapore Changi Airport (SIN) which recommenced in March this year.
This period of increased frequency with the aircraft comes just weeks after Qantas will axe its A380 services from Melbourne to Los Angeles International Airport (LAX), which are set to transition to the Boeing 787-9 from October. In this article, we will look at the increase in services between November 2026 to March 2027 according to data from Cirium, an aviation analytics company.
Three Daily Airbus A380 Flights Coming To Melbourne
As already mentioned, Emirates flies its double-decker from Dubai to Melbourne twice daily, and Singapore Airlines relaunched its superjumbo service from Singapore in March. While Qantas will axe its A380 services to the airport this October, Melbourne will still see an increase of 32% overall in A380 services across the busy Southern Hemisphere summer season.
Qantas’ move to transition its Melbourne A380 services to Los Angeles to the 787-9 comes as the airline looks to centralize its A380 operations from its largest hub at Sydney Kingsford Smith Airport (SYD). The airline will retain several international long-haul A380 services from Sydney to destinations such as Singapore, London, Johannesburg and Los Angeles, with seasonal services to the likes of Tokyo and other ad-hoc additions.
Looking at data from Cirium, we can see that between November and March, a total of 449 departures are scheduled with the A380, an increase on 340 operated in the same period 12 months before. These are due to Singapore Airlines resuming its A380 service to Melbourne, despite Qantas also axing its own superjumbo services to the airport.
109 Extra Airbus A380 Flights From November To March
Emirates remains the world’s largest operator of the A380, with more than 100 active double-deckers in its fleet. It utilizes these aircraft on popular routes, and the airline funnels thousands of travelers from Melbourne through its busy Dubai hub into its wider European, African, and Indian subcontinent destinations.
For the Dubai-based airline, Melbourne is one of five Australian gateways to which the airline operates, including Sydney, Brisbane, Perth and Adelaide. Singapore Airlines, on the other hand, is the largest foreign airline to operate to Australia, with services nonstop from Singapore to Adelaide, Brisbane, Cairns, Darwin, Melbourne, Perth and Sydney. The airline will also be the first long-haul carrier to serve Western Sydney Airport (WSI) from November 23.
It is worth noting that Emirates only flies the A380 on its services to Brisbane, Melbourne and Sydney. Meanwhile, Singapore Airlines flies its A380 on flights to Melbourne and Sydney (among other aircraft types depending on flight schedule).
Historical Airbus A380 Operators To Melbourne
It goes without saying that the departure of Qantas A380 services at Melbourne will be sorely missed, and the flying kangaroo will become the fifth airline to have historically operated the superjumbo at this airport. Qantas’ exit in October joins the likes of China Southern, which was the last operator to adjust its Melbourne services to other aircraft types. China Southern operated its A380 (now retired) to Melbourne from Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport (CAN) up until 2022.
Meanwhile, three other airlines also frequented the airport with their respective double-deckers. These include Etihad Airways, which operated from Abu Dhabi (AUH) until 2017, Malaysia Airlines from Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KUL) briefly in 2018, and Qatar Airways from Doha (DOH) until 2020. The number of active A380 operators has been dwindling, as many airlines look for alternative, smaller, cost-efficient aircraft.
Today, the only remaining operators of the A380 include Emirates (largest operator), British Airways, Singapore, Qantas, Etihad, Lufthansa, Asiana Airlines, Korean Air, and All Nippon Airways. Global Airlines also tried to launch its own A380 flights last year between the United Kingdom and the United States, but only four transatlantic flights took place before its plane was placed into long-term storage in France.
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