It was an unusual flight for Richard Lenz, Lufthansa’s Chief Training Captain A380, and Mattias Sode, the airline’s A380 Technical Captain, as well as two Lufthansa technicians. And one that the crew certainly did not expect in 2020: On December 2, they brought the first Airbus A380 from storage in Spain back to Frankfurt with the D-AIMK “Düsseldorf” – so that the machine could return to scheduled service in the summer can go. At least three A380s are required to serve the planned routes – but up to five of the flying giants could return to Lufthansa service.
More than 100 aircraft are currently stored by the Tarmac specialists in Teruel. The D-AIMK arrived on May 12, 2020. The company is not only responsible for the storage work: aircraft manufacturer Airbus specifies precisely which maintenance work is to be carried out during the “Long Term Storage” every 7, 15, 30, 60 and 90 days as well as every six and twelve months. The contract also includes that Tarmac hands over the machine airworthy.
However, a lot was different on this flight: Because in Teruel there is no possibility to try retracting and extending the landing gear on the ground, it was decided to leave the wheels out on the flight to the shipyard in Frankfurt to be on the safe side. The flight, which was much slower at around 600 instead of 800 km/h, therefore took 3:07 hours. The start was also delayed until late in the evening due to the weather.
Thousands of man-hours for reactivation
And there was one more feature: for long-term storage of aircraft, dry regions are often chosen, and extreme weather events are low. But Teruel was unlucky: A heavy hailstorm swept across the square during the Corona period. In the case of the Lufthansa A380, there was essentially only damage to the landing flaps. Despite the dents in the plastic, it was even possible to fly to Frankfurt, where the components will be replaced.
At the end of January, D-AIMK is scheduled to continue to Manila, Philippines. Among other things, a C-Check is carried out there at Lufthansa Technik. The remaining machines go through the same program a few weeks apart before going back on the line in the summer. Lufthansa has twelve A380 captains and their crews ready for this, who for years could only obtain their licenses in the simulator.
Also read:
– Teruel: Why park billions in the Spanish province
– Desert terminus: The last resting place of the Airbus A380
– After months of standstill due to Corona: How a jumbo is now made fit again