China Southern Airlines has plans to put China's first Airbus A380 aloft, on Oct 15. And, to give more passengers a chance to be a part of the introductory tour, China Southern has scheduled the maiden flight to cover routes between Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou. After that, it will go into international service.

China Southern is the only Chinese airline to get the "super-jumbo" A380 jet and has ordered five of them. It is the seventh global airline with the jet.

The A380 has eight first-class seats, 70 in business class, and 428 in economy. The double-decker plane will support the company's move to double the capacity on overseas routes to 35 percent, by 2015.

The company has reported that 21 sections working to ensure the successful operation of the A380 - from flight operations to passenger safety and services, to ground services and maintenance - every detail in the process.

In recent years, China Southern has increased the modernization of its fleet of aircraft with more advanced facilities and approaches. With the new A380, it has nearly 450 aircraft, from Boeing and Airbus to helicopters, putting it in first place in Asia.

(China Daily 10/12/2011 page7)