Airbus has painted the first A380 destined to enter airline service with launch operator Singapore Airlines (SIA) later this year. Aircraft MSN003 emerged from the manufacturer’s Hamburg paint hangar following installation of its passenger cabin in March, and testing of the associated systems last month.
Several passenger windows in the forward lower deck have been blanked off, suggesting that SIA has opted for an innovative first-class cabin design.
SIA says 100 painters worked over four shifts to hand-polish the 3,100m2 of fuselage surface area. The painting process took 21 days.