Development began on the Airbus A3XX in 1994. After the research and budget were completed in 1999, Airbus decided to proceed with plans to manufacture this aircraft and renamed the project the A380.
The Airbus A380 was developed and designed to enter the market as the world's highest capacity civilian transport aircraft. The Airbus A380 boasts a lower passenger per mile cost than its closest competitor, the Boeing 747.
Before the development of the Airbus A380, Boeing and Airbus worked together on a research project called the very large commercial transport. Realizing that the market could only sustain one company, Boeing left the project, opting to develop the 777 instead.
