The Airbus A380 is not typically associated with carriers from Asia after becoming seemingly synonymous with Middle East-based airlines. However, China Southern Airlines (ZNH) was one of few airlines in Asia to order the type, becoming the 15th airline to do so in 2005. 

The order was supposed to strengthen the position of many interested parties, including the manufacturer, carrier, and China, which was about to host the Beijing Summer Olympic Games in 2008.  

However, the outlook was not necessarily rosy from the beginning. Delays mounted and the Toulouse-based Final Assembly Line (FAL) did not roll out the very first Airbus A380 on time. Delays continued to mount and instead of flying spectators prestigiously into the Beijing games with one of the newest aircraft on the market, China Southern Airlines (ZNH) had to resort to flying customers into the Chinese capital on… well, regular aircraft.  

‘While this might not necessarily seem like a big deal, major sporting events and aviation, in the general sense of the word, have always gone hand in hand.  

During the Olympics four years later, for examples, British Airways unveiled several special liveries on its aircraft, while Emirates, the airline synonymous with the A380, used the double-decker to fly an advertisement for the Dubai Expo across the globe.   

China’s aviation potential 

Was the marketing of the Games damaged by the fact that China Southern Airlines (ZNH) did not receive any A380s…