THE Airbus 380, the giant airliner that is Europe’s biggest collaborative project, emerged through the glitz and smoke of a rock show and the pomp of a political launch yesterday to be seized upon by each of four leaders as a symbol of a distinct national vision.

Tony Blair and his French, German and Spanish counterparts were dwarfed by the booming sound and light spectacle in the mammoth hangar at the Toulouse Airbus headquarters. God Himself, or so it appeared, was on hand to present the star of the show: the biggest civil aircraft in the world that will carry up to 850 passengers as well as the industrial ambitions of Europe.

The deity in the show was cast as old man “History” but the grey-haired sage, who was projected in virtual form on a vast backdrop, left no doubt about his biblical origins as he narrated, to an audience of 5,000, the antics of mankind striving through the ages for the dream of flight.

As dancers flew on cables and skipped across the stage, the God-like MC switched from biblical to corporate speak to present the A380 as Man’s most heroic flying feat to date. “Everything is possible. Never stop believing. Think differently . . . take a fresh sheet of paper,” said the deity. The world’s biggest curtain then drew back to reveal the A380, in its immensity, a flying Channel ferry in comparison with the finesse of Concorde, that other milestone of aviation unveiled in Toulouse 35 years ago.

Beyond the kitsch unveiling, there was no mistaking the pride and sense of history among the aircraft-makers and politicians as Europe’s most successful enterprise showed off the product of their $12 billion investment.

With its tail eight floors high, two decks running its whole length and a wingspan of 250ft, Airbus F-WWOW, as the prototype is humorously registered, makes a Boeing jumbo jet look like a humble Cessna.

On hand for the “reveal”, as the baptism was inelegantly called, were the bosses of the 14 airlines who have already bought into the Airbus vision of the future with 149 models on order. Singapore Airlines will become next year the first to fly the Airbus, which has British-built wings, undercarriage and fuel system as well as Rolls-Royce engines.

Among the bosses was Sir Richard Branson, whose tweed jacket and open shirt distinguished him from the masses.

The boss of Virgin Atlantic had broken with the solemn majesty of the occasion by promising in Toulouse on Monday to install private double bedrooms and casinos on his A380s “so now there are maybe two ways of getting lucky on Virgin planes”. When Mr Blair visited the Virgin stand after the show he was interested in this development: “Double beds? Now you’re talking,” he said to Mr Branson.

Superlatives rained down as President Chirac and the other dignitaries hailed the engineering marvel that they hope will help to keep the lead that Airbus has established for the past two years over Boeing as the world’s leading civil aircraft maker. For all the hymns to Airbus as the symbol of Euro- pean co-operation, however, the leaders each struck a national slant during their moment in the spotlight.

For M Chirac, Airbus was largely a tale of Gallic grandeur with European help. “This veritable flying ocean liner will mark a date in the history of aviation,” he said, going on to list other milestones, all French. There was no mention of the Wright brothers, who are seen in France as imitators of Clement Ader, who achieved a hop for a few yards in the 1890s, a decade before them. M Chirac also depicted Airbus as proof that Europe must pump public money into high-technology enterprise to compete with the Americans. France wants to be the home of a new European agency for picking industrial champions.

Mr Blair, perhaps with elections in mind, took a different tack, hailing Airbus and its success against Boeing as proof of Europe’s prowess in the free market, thanks to the genius of plucky British industry. “This shows that we can compete in the global market . . . it is British industry at its best,” he said.

Airbus, through BAe Systems, its British component, had created 20,000 jobs for Britain and “export gains running into billions of pounds”. Like the headmaster congratulating the first XI, he said: “Now we see the final product, we are amazed. It is simply stunning. Well done all of you in Europe who made it happen. This is a day on which you can be truly proud.”

For Gerhard Schröder, Airbus seemed to amount to the revenge of “old Europe” against the Americans who had relegated Germany to that category. “This is a triumph of science and engineering . . . The tradition of good old Europe made this possible,” the Chancellor said. “Our Europe is still in a position to give impulse to innovative actions.”

The Spanish leader echoed his country’s eternal yearning to be accepted as one of the EU’s big boys. The Union was “the best example of civilised co-existence ever invented by man in history,” said José Luis Zapatero. Saluting the “dream made reality” that is the Airbus, he said: “Spain is very proud to be part of this event.”

FROM DREAM TO TAKE-OFF

June 1994: Airbus begins engineering development of aircraft, known as A3XX

July 2000: Emirates Airlines wants seven

December 19: Airbus officially launches aircraft, called A380

January 2001: Federal Express in America wants ten of cargo version

February 20: Airbus expands its plant in Hamburg for assembly of cabins. Assembly of aircraft takes place in Toulouse

July 16, 2002: President Chirac lays first stone in Toulouse hangar

June 15, 2003: Emirates increases its orders to 45 A380s

July 4: Airbus plant in Broughton, Wales, opens. It is where wings are made

August 19, 2003: First glimpse of aircraft in Nancy, when a big piece of fuselage is unveiled

March 25, 2004: The front and central sections of the plane are unveiled at the plant in St Nazaire as they are transported to Toulouse

May 7: Jean-Pierre Raffarin, the French Prime Minister, inaugurates Toulouse assembly line

January 18, 2005: Airbus unveils a completed A380

March: Scheduled first test flight of aircraft

March 2006: Forecast start of A380 entering service with Singapore Airlines between London and Singapore

2008: First freight A380s expected to take to air

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