Our lives depend on it!

And it is something we are not getting 100% right every time!

A Case Study

To contrast the work that we do!

It is about the A 380

Heard of it?

The Airbus A 380

A Big, Big Nose Job!

Workers inspect the nose section of an A380 under construction at St. Nazaire, on France's

Atlantic coast. Sections of the fuselage are built at this factory, then shipped by sea, river, and

highway for final assembly in Toulouse.

Flying Beluga

In Stade, Germany, an A380 tailfin is loaded onto a transport plane. The plane, nicknamed the Beluga because

of its bulbous profile, can accommodate the 24.1-meter-high tailfin, which is longer than the wing of a Boeing 737 or Airbus A320. But other A380 parts are too big and have to

be shipped by land or sea.

Winging it

An A380 wing under construction at an Airbus factory in Broughton, North Wales. A new factory had to be built to accommodate the 46-meter-long

wing, which is taller than a nine-story building.

A mega plane

A ferry carries an A380 wing down the River Dee from the Broughton wing factory. What's that

AFON DYFRDWY painted on the side of the boat -- a serial number? No, it's Welsh for "River Dee!

Wings over water!

With a pair of A380 wings stowed in its hold, a ferry steams

toward the mouth of the Garonne River in France, enroute

from Wales. The oceangoing ferry, christened the Ville de

Bordeaux, was custom-built for Airbus at a Chinese

shipyard.

Historic Passage

A barge carrying an A380 wing passes under the 19th-

century Pont de Pierre on the Garonne River in Bordeaux,

France. The pilings of the historic bridge were reinforced to

guard against collisions with barges carrying pieces of the

megaplane.

Wide Load Ahead!

Custom-built flatbed trucks ferry A380 parts from Bordeaux

to Toulouse. Airbus and the French government split the

cost of widening and straightening this highway, which is

closed to traffic several nights a month so the convoys can

pass.

Touchdown

Sixteen Football Fields could fit inside the A380 assembly

plant in Toulouse. Five test aircraft have already been built

here, and construction is under way on A380s to be

delivered by the end of this year to Singapore Airlines, the

first customer.

Roll them in!

Workers help roll a chunk of A380 fuselage into

place at the Toulouse assembly plant. Note the

three levels inside the fuselage: Two passenger

decks, with a cargo hold at the bottom.

Snap then together!

O.K., it's a little harder than putting together a Lego toy, but

with the wings and fuselage built elsewhere, final assembly

in Toulouse takes surprisingly little time. Airbus says it

expects to build four A380s per month after production

ramps up next year.

Roll them out

A finished A380, one of five test aircraft, being

towed onto a runway at Toulouse. It will be flown

to another Airbus facility in Hamburg, Germany, for

painting and interior outfitting.

Paint job

Workers in Hamburg paint the exterior of an A380. What will the megaplane's interior look like? That's

a secret, closely guarded by Airbus and the carriers that will start flying the plane next year.

Take off!

An A380 heads skyward at the Asian Aerospace air show in Singapore in February. The plane,

though painted with the livery of launch customer Singapore Airlines, is actually one of several test

models.

Honestly...

Can life get more complex than this?

What defines great

In our jobs...

Lvl X

Share gain

>15% growth

Great LaunchesGreat Launches

Consistent Delivery

Best quality of coverage

Best quality of infrastructure

If...

Airbus can execute such awesomely

complex jets, we can certainly get

execution 100% right!

This MOC...

Winter Plans

Diwali Loading

Tooth Brushes

After all... It is high time we

took off!

Chennai in Top Flight!

MOC 11

2007