It was a day of great anticipation and the early morning rain and threatening dark clouds were a reason for some trepidation. This day - 30 May 2012 - is the culmination of a long wait for the Airbus A380 to be finally delivered to Malaysia Airlines. Perhaps it was a lot of positive thinking, and then again, perhaps it was the collective willpower of the many Malaysia Airlines staff members who had gathered in front of Hangar 6 (and certainly elsewhere around Kuala Lumpur International Airport) - an hour or so before the 1530hrs arrival of 9M-MNA, the skies cleared and the sun revealed its full glory.
At 1528hrs, the unmistakable shape of the A380 appeared in the sky south of the airport - heading toward runway 32R but with undercarriages stowed. A low level flypast was in progress and MAS staff who had earlier mistakenly cheered the landing of an Emirates A380 on runway 32L once again became excited.
If the approaching A380 appeared rather plain, it is because it was only adorned in the as yet incomplete new livery of Malaysia Airlines. As the A380 grew in size and its engines are now barely audible, cheers and clapping - and perhaps a few wolf whistles - rang out. By now, the A380 was gleaming and resplendent in its pristine paintwork fresh from Finkenwerder.
As the A380 disappeared in the direction of the city, many were left wondering if it would land on runway 32L in front of the hangar. It did not as air traffic controllers recleared it for another landing approach to runway 32R - much to the disappointment of the energetic and vibrant social media team from MAS and the invited aviation enthusiasts who were perched up high on a metal platform.
Any lingering disappointment remaining was quickly banished when the A380 crossed the airfield and approached the hangar. Excited staff members who obviously had the most desirable access on the ramp quickly made their way to the edge of the taxyway to welcome the new flagship of Malaysia Airlines.
As the A380 made a left turn and revealed its side profile, gasp of admiration and excitement were audible - various staff members have earlier commented how long they have waited for this day. Even as certain elements of the new livery were still missing, the A380 still looked extremely smart and updated. The kite (wau) logo is now rendered in blue on the tail and the airline's title was similarly applied onto the forward fuselage.
Another right turn and with about 200m of final taxying, the A380 was now staring at the gathered crowd - nose-on and majestic. Those Rolls Royce engines are huge ... but amazingly silent.
After what seemed like infinity, the aircraft came to a halt and very quickly, the ground engineers were already tending to it. The engines were shut down, after having been running for the last 12 hours or more after taking off from Toulouse Blagnac Airport the previous night.
With VIPs, senior management and pilots of Malaysia Airlines onboard, many were keen to see them emerge and perhaps congratulate them on the successful delivery flight. Many more including me were probably envious - and I could not help wondering what it is like to be on a delivery flight with an entire aircraft to just a small select group of privileged passengers! The passenger steps were quickly positioned and the aircraft door opened. This was the signal for many in the crowd to swarm the A380, for everyone wanted to come close to touch, feel and mostly admire this new giant.
Positioned in front of the hangar (which had the airline's recognisable blue/red kite logo on its facade), it was clear that the airline's corporate identity was in transition. The markings that will subsequently be applied on the rear half of the fuselage (and possibly on the engine nacelles) remained a closely guarded secret - even as a blue design was previously revealed. It seems more surprises may yet be in the offing. Don't aviation photographers like us love surprises like this?
After much close scrutiny and inspection, what do the staff members think? There was no need to guess ... they were jumping for joy! Even an invited aviation enthusiast - the very affable Jonathan Kong - could not resist doing the same.
Yet another staff member stood rooted to the ramp, admiring the gleaming A380 through a pair of sunglasses - no doubt reflecting on what's to come as it enters service on the London-Heathrow route on 1 July and subsequently also to Sydney, Australia.
9M-MNA current stay in KUL will be brief, long enough to do some ground duties, earn its certification by the relevant authorities, undertake a joyride flight on 5 June before heading back to Toulouse and Finkenwerder-Hamburg for the hitherto secret portion of its new corporate identity and livery as well as a cabin re-configuration. During this period, the Premium Economy seats onboard will be replaced by regular Economy Class seats ... and come 30 June, the events that marked this day will once again be repeated ... when the already much loved 9M-MNA will return in full glory - with its complete livery.
Watch this space!
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