Down the road from Airbus’s Toulouse factory where final assembly took place for the A380, a former Airbus engineer, Frédéric Deleuze, is working on a plan to turn one of the retired planes into a luxury hotel.
Deleuze is still working on plans, but expects to have that done by the end of next month. The planned location is near the Toulouse Airport and a large convention center, which might appeal, he says, both to aviation geeks and business travelers.
Deleuze didn’t indicate how much he has paid for the aircraft or which airline previously flew it. His conversion plan calls for a 60-seat restaurant resembling a control tower connected to the plane by a walkway into a boarding door. The hotel is to have 31 rooms, including two suites, one in the cockpit and the other on the upper level. Room rates are planned at about $125 to $175 a night, with the suites going for $350.
