The world’s largest airliner has returned to Scotland on Sunday for the first time since September 2019.
Thousands of people used aircraft tracking sites to follow the A380 as it made its journey to Glasgow.
Emirates said it was reintroducing the Airbus for flights between the city and Dubai due to increased demand.
The double-decker aircraft towers at over 24 metres high, with a wingspan of nearly 80 metres, has four jet engines and can carry 517 passengers.
Glasgow Airport made special arrangements to help people eager to catch a glimpse of the plane’s arrival.
The flight landed at the airport on schedule at 12.45pm. Renfrewshire Chamber of Commerce welcomed the plane’s arrival and praised the work of the those made it possible.
Natalie Don MSP and Gavin Newlands MP welcomes the A380 which was piloted by a local constituent who “brought it in with a silky smooth landing”.
Arrangements had been made for the public who were keen “to join in the celebrations”.
Glasgow Airport operations director Ronald Leitch said the airline’s Glasgow-Dubai route “continues to be a tremendous success story for Scotland”, and the reintroduction of an A380 is “a huge vote of confidence for Glasgow and the wider region”.
iStockGlasgow Airport said it had workedclosely with Police Scotland to make arrangements to minimise congestion on both its internal road network and those surrounding.
Six hours of free parking was made available at the Long Stay Car Park with the airport urging everyone wanting to watch the aircraft arrive and depart to gather there.
Walking routes along pavements to the west and east of the airport were highlighted in advance.
Glasgow AirportParking is prohibited on any of the roads surrounding the airport, including Abbotsinch Road, Walkinshaw Road and Barnsford Road with drivers warned that no vehicles were to be left within 3m of the facility’s perimeter fence.
Police Scotland and airport security have been enforcing parking restrictions throughout the day.
Emirates previously ran Glasgow-Dubai flights using Boeing 777s, which have 302 seats for passengers.
The airline’s UK divisional vice president, Richard Jewsbury, said: “The return of the A380 is purely demand driven. We’ve seen sustained demand from the Scottish market.
“Dubai is the number one destination but we’re seeing really good flows down to Australia, Thailand, the Indian subcontinent – which is very popular particularly for VFR (visiting friends and relatives) traffic – and the Indian Ocean.
“It’s about growing the capacity back.
“As we go into the summer period we’re expecting more visitors and inbound traffic from around the network.”
The vast majority of A380s around the world were put into storage at the height of the coronavirus pandemic, fuelling speculation they would never return due to the existence of more fuel-efficient aircraft.
But their ability to carry more passengers than all other commercial planes means the model is making a recovery.
Mr Jewsbury claimed the suggestion that A380s could be permanently grounded was “always ridiculous”.
He said: “I think the A380 always has been and will continue to be in high demand.
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