SteveS said:

"The bottom line for the A380's success is the gallons per passenger cost. If they can beat 747s 57.7 gallons per passenger then they have a market that will work. The fuel burn rate is the answer."

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Airbus claims the A380 is super fuel efficient. The 747-400 is also super fuel efficient (the turbofan engines are or will be interchangeable). The key is to keep the aircraft full. That's where the A380 will probably have trouble. My family and I recently did a trip to New Zealand from San Francisco on a 747-400. It was a new route so Air New Zealand was subsidizing the cost as a loss leader (we essentially paid for the kerosene only). The plane was full going to New Zealand but half empty coming back to California. It tells me something that Air New Zealand can only half fill a 747-400 with a significant fare subsidy. I suspect Airbus will get its "pants pulled down" by the A380. This will validate Boeing's tactic of sticking with old technology (747) and kill all future innovation in wide body jets. As I earlier mentioned, this maybe a lose-lose situation.

Gary