The Airbus A380 known for first-class suites, gold trimmings and deep-pile carpets faces a less luxurious future as a pilgrimage shuttle that may help revive flagging sales of the superjumbo.
The double-decker flagship, priced at US$414 million ($533 million), could swap fine wines, bone china and lobster salads for narrow seats and more frugal service as Airbus pitches the jet as ideally suited to become a workhorse for the Muslim pilgrimage to Mecca.
Established as the world's most glamorous plane with top-end carriers such as Dubai-based Emirates and Singapore Airlines, Airbus sees a new niche for the industry's biggest jetliner ferrying the millions of believers who visit Islam's holiest city each year. To win sales for a model that hasn't secured a new airline customer since 2012, it needs to convince would-be buyers that the aircraft has a place in their fleets outside the week-long Hajj.
"All the Islamic countries have potential," said Fouad Attar, Airbus's Middle East managing director.
