British Airways receives world's largest passenger plane

4th Jul 2013 12:33

British Airways (BA) is the first UK carrier to take delivery of an Airbus A380, the world's largest passenger plane.Airbus handed over the double-decker superjumbo plane at its Toulouse headquarters in France before being flown into London's Heathrow airport.It will make its first commercial long-haul flight with BA, a subsidiary of International Consolidated Airlines (IAG), to Los Angeles on September 24th.The delivery comes after British Airways received two Boeing Dreamliner aircraft last week. The new planes are part of British Airway's £10bn plan to upgrade its long-haul fleet.The A380 is powered by Rolls-Royce engines and its wings are 54% larger than those of the Boeing 747 jumbo jet. The 238ft-long, 79ft high, plane can reach a speed of 587 miles per hour and is said to be 50% quieter on take-off.BA's Chief Executive Keith Williams said: "The A380 is a fantastic aircraft and an excellent showpiece for British engineering. Our customers are going to love the space, light and comfort on board." "The delivery of these exciting aircraft opens a new chapter in British Airways' history. We are proud to be leading the way in Europe in operating both these aircraft types."IAG's shares climbed 2.99% to 271.80p at 12:59 on Thursday.RD