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Airbus to Auction Off A380 Jumbo Jet Piece by Piece

There are 380 lots with more than 500 items in all.

The dream of owning a jumbo jet is often squashed for most people when they see the cost. The Airbus A380’s $450 million price tag, and the fact that they don’t make them anymore, likely puts the aircraft out of reach. But with some luck and persistence, you could own a small piece of the plane.

Airbus recently announced an auction that will see the aerospace company dismantle an A380 and sell a lot of random pieces of it. According to the auction lots posted online, the parts will include seats, drink carts, inflatable life vests, propulsion systems and the full bar from the business cabin. The auction will also feature some specialty items like a surfboard made from recycled A380 composite material and multiple parts like engine blades that have been turned into original art pieces.

According to CNN, there are 380 lots with more than 500 items in all and they’ll all be up for auction live in France and online from October 13th through the 15th. The A380 that’s being taken apart was first flown by Air Emirates in 2008 before being scrapped in 2021.

Airbus said that most of the proceeds from the auction will go toward the Airbus Foundation and help with the organization’s ongoing humanitarian efforts.

Tarmac Aerosave said that when Airbus first approached them about the project, it was motivated to be extra precise in the recycling process to maintain all the pieces that would be auctioned off. Normally, when a jet is retired, about 90% of it is recycled. In this case, Tarmac was careful to collect the “good pieces” from the aircraft.

Some of the pieces will be fairly affordable, like emergency exit light panels expected to go for around $80. Others, like a faux marble wash basin from a first class restroom, could fetch as much as $3,500. But who knows, if you manage to buy enough of these pieces, you might be able to assemble something that roughly resembles an A380.

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