Air France-KLM, whose activity was almost shutdown by the coronavirus crisis, decided to accelerate the exit of its fleet from the A380 by announcing Wednesday "the definitive cessation" of operations the expensive giant of the air, two and a half years before the scheduled date. 

After 10 years of good and loyal service, Air France's Airbus A380s have made their last flights. Nailed to the ground since the start of the epidemic, their final shutdown was precipitated by the coronavirus crisis. Air France is therefore now separating from its air giant, two and a half years before the scheduled date. 

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"When it came out, it was the ultimate"

Over the past decade, it has served some 16 destinations, each more prestigious than the last, such as New York, San Francisco and Shanghai. For some, like Philippe, a young retired enthusiast of aeronautics, the disappointment is immense. "At the time, when it came out, it was the pinnacle for me. And I'm a little bit sad that a beautiful plane like that was abandoned by all the airlines. We now live in a world where ecology and savings take precedence over dreams ... ", he regrets at the microphone of Europe 1. 

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He has fond memories of his travels on board. "I was very happy to be able to travel on this plane because it fascinated us. And it always fascinates us," he says. The successors of the A380 will indeed be smaller, to adapt to a drop in demand, but also more profitable and less polluting. This is particularly the case for the A350 or even the Boeing 787, whose deliveries are already underway.