This 1cm cable error caused the production of the Airbus A380 to be delayed for months
Published on Jul 14, 2025 at 12:14 AM (UTC+4)
by Henry Kelsall
Last updated on Jul 10, 2025 at 5:14 PM (UTC+4)
Edited by
Emma Matthews
A 1cm cable error caused the production of the Airbus A380 to be delayed for months, stopping the airliner from entering service.
The Airbus A380 was built by Airbus from 2003 to 2021, and it became the world’s largest passenger airliner and the only full-length double-deck jet airliner.
While sales ended up being poor, the project already had a troubled existence in development. The biggest issue was caused by a small cable error.
Not only did the error cost Airbus millions, but it also delayed the project by two years, costing the airline a huge amount of money.
DISCOVER OUR SUPERCAR AUCTION SITE – View live auctions on SBX Cars
What caused the Airbus A380 to be delayed?
The delay simply came down to an issue with the wiring within the Airbus A380.
Inside the airplane was roughly 300 miles of wiring, with there being 98,000 wires in total and 40,000 connectors.
One of those cables was a fiber optic cable in the tail section of the aircraft.
As they attempted to connect everything up, however, designers found out that the cable was 1cm too short.
The issue was caused by the use of different design software by German and French engineers.
As a result, a major redesign was needed due to this one short piece of wire.
And it was this small wire that caused the Airbus A380 to be delayed.
The delay really hurt the A380’s delivery program
With the issue identified, Airbus was forced to spend at least another two years designing the airliner.
It wasn’t that the 1cm cable problem took two years.
But it was down to the fact that the need for a longer cable necessitated a major redesign within the aircraft’s wiring.
Production costs almost doubled, and airlines were forced to wait for their new aircraft.
In total, the company would spend $25 billion on developing the A380.
As sales fell below expectations, the company had not recouped the development costs when production concluded in 2021.
The A380 is also very expensive to operate, with five of the original 15 airlines operating it having retired the jet.
Had the cabling issue not been so costly, A380 sales could likely have been greater than they were.
Click the star icon next to supercarblondie.com in Google Search to stay ahead of the curve on the latest and greatest supercars, hypercars, and ground-breaking technology.
DISCOVER SBX CARS: The global premium car auction platform powered by Supercar Blondie
Henry is a content writer with nearly ten years experience, having written for various publications since 2017. Qualifying with a Sports Journalism degree from Staffordshire University, Henry loves all things automotive but has a particular soft spot for classic Japanese cars and anything Lancia. He also has a curious passion for steam locomotives.
