Legitimate reasons...just because your dad didn't get a job there.

And why the antipathy towards the A-350?? This will be just an up-to-date version of the A-330 and no revolution like the A-380.
Bringing a product up-to-date by slapping some new features onto an existing platform is very common these days. Just look at your PC. The ATI 9800pro, for example, is just an upgraded 9700pro, which was revolutionary at its time.

And Airbus is the first company to do that in great style in the aircraft manufacturing sector.  So the uproar is completely injustified...

What were you expecting? A completely new medium-sized Airbus appearing out of nowhere?

I wouldn't wonder if Airbus was more successful with that strategy.

I still don't understand what all the fuss is about or why people get so passionate about companies they know very little about. Both Airbus & Boeing (alphabetical order in case someone takes offence ) are huge companies employing 1,000s of people. I assume their research departments know what they're doing or they wouldn't have been successful or still in business. That business happens to be building passenger aeroplanes for mass transport. There's only so many possible variations of what is basically an aluminium tube with wings. With modern computer design anything intended for the same purpose is bound to look very similar. Unless you're specifically interested in these things it's often very difficult to tell one company's product from another. I reckon to be pretty good at aircraft recognition but, with a few exceptions, most modern jet airliners look the same to me. This also applies to cars as I have little interest in either.

Most of what you, as an ordinary member of the general public, know about any new aircraft in the pipeline is based on publicity & company propaganda intended to throw competitors (each other) offtrack. This often has very little bearing on reality. With Airbus & Boeing it unfortunately seems to have turned into a slanging match.

Will these new designs be successful? As I said before, time will tell. Nobody dreamed the 747 would revolutionise mass air travel or still be carrying 1,000s of passengers every day almost 35 years after its first commercial flight. The company went to considerable financial risks to produce it & the gamble paid off handsomely. This is not always the case & they could have so easily failed. I think there's room for both companies & wish them both success.

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This is a very good point. I don't think any company is any better than another in this respect.

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I can remember people saying much the same about the new "Jumbo Jet" 35 years ago.
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generally the passenger numbers for the A380 are not much more than the 747-400. However wait until some of the asian and indian carriers get hold of it and configure it to single class only. 690 to 750 wouldnt be out of the question.

Hi Doug, A recent survey showed only a few airports were ready for the A380, i know memphis was 1, jfk might have been another. Others have been working as fast as possible to get their facilities ready. Dual jet bridges are being designed for it and the taxiway and parking spaces widend. I dont even want to guess what airports will have to do in terms of Immigration, after a recent trip through Charlotte, it took over an hour for 230 passengers to be processed from an A330, so god only knows what double that would take.

The point is people will take whats open to them. To say 550 people don't want to go from say Heathrow to New York is rediculous. You have a bigger aircraft you have fewer flights, so more people to go on each flight. And so you can have less aircraft, which uses less fuel and you get a huge saving on running costs.

After being able to cross the atlantic in 8 hours for so long people won't be willing to go back to the week or so it took in the Liners.

I have a feeling the A380 will end up dominating the Atlantic and Asian routes. A lot of people wanting to travel a long way.