Related: The Cranky Flier’s Look at the A380, Airbus A380: More Passengers Means More Toilets, and Touring the Airbus A380.
[via cynical-c]
An unnamed individual is slated to spend $150 million on an Airbus A380 — the world’s largest plane — for personal use. Then he’ll spend up to another $150 million upgrading the jet to create the ultimate “Flying Palace.”
Normally configured for passenger use, the plane could seat up to 853 people. But when you’re designing for one, you have room to create your own mobile mansion — two dining areas, a 600-plus-square-foot master bedroom, and whirlpool tub, and — because this particular buyer is a Middle Eastern head of state — a missile-defense system.
It’s like my apartment. With wings and a missile defense system. And three or four times bigger.
The only downside to globe-trotting in the most awesome display of wealth conceivable by modern man, is that these private jumbo jets are so enormous that they can’t land in many of the world’s high-end jet ports.
Although, with a plane like that, why would you ever want to land in the first place?
[via World Hum]
The Airbus A380 is truly a marvel of modern engineering. Not only is it the largest airliner in the world, but it is also the most advanced. Engineers crafted each system with meticulous detail from the fly-by-wire systems to the… toilets?
Yes, I’ll admit that plumbing wasn’t my first consideration when ogling pictures of the enormous plane, but it certainly was a chief concern for the company. Frank Dohrmann, an Airbus lead engineer, told journalists that customers won’t care about a small temperature variance, but “if the toilets get jammed, every passenger will remember it for years.” I know I certainly would. In fact, it would be my first Gadling post once I landed.
3,280ft of water and waste pipes are housed within the 197ft frame of the A380. Sewage travels through the waste pipes at more than 60mph. This might seem like overkill, but the speed is required to support the 18 toilets for up to 800 passengers. Now, that’s a lot of poop. Not impressed yet? How about this — the plumbing is also capable of supporting showers. Fancy!
I hope, with all of these toilets, the Airbus A380 has an air freshener system that’s just as advanced.
Related: Howstuffworks – How does the toilet in a commercial airliner work?