Qantas received its final A380 back to Sydney ending a nearly six-year storage due to COVID.
Qantas welcomed its tenth and final Airbus A380 back to Sydney on December 2, 2025, marking the end of a nearly six-year storage period that began during the COVID-19 pandemic. The aircraft—named after Qantas founder Paul McGinness—returns as the airline completes what it describes as the largest maintenance program in its 105-year history.
Initially, the A380 will serve as an operational spare throughout the busy Christmas travel season. Beginning January 1, 2026, it is scheduled to enter regular service on the Sydney–Dallas route, enabling daily A380 operations on that long-haul connection.
Restoring the superjumbo required extensive work. Qantas says engineering and maintenance teams across multiple locations devoted more than 100,000 hours to the project. Tasks included full engineering inspections, heavy maintenance, complete landing gear replacement, and a full cabin refurbishment.
Qantas International CEO Cam Wallace highlighted the effort involved:
“Bringing an A380 back into service after nearly six years in storage is no small feat. Teams of engineers around the globe came together to complete more than 100,000 hours of work to prepare the aircraft for flying again—from extensive checks to heavy maintenance, landing gear replacement, a full cabin refresh and assessment flying, with parts shipped by land, sea and sky.”
“When this aircraft lands today, it will have been nearly 2,000 days since it last touched Australian soil, and we’re proud to return it to the skies,” he added.
