Following news earlier this week that Etihad is likely to become the next carrier to ground its Airbus A380 fleet, new data from Cirium has revealed the dire straights the aircraft finds itself in.

Of the 240 planes currently with airlines around the world, just 21 are in service.

Cirium data (as of March 16th) shows Emirates remains the largest operator of the plane, with 15 in service, while China Southern Airlines, with five, and Korean Air, with one, are the other airlines currently using the aircraft.

Emirates has nearly half of the A380s in the world currently in storage, with 102 on the tarmac, while Singapore Airlines (19), Lufthansa (14) and Qantas (12) also have a large number out of service.

It remains to be seen how many ever fly commercially again, with IATA predicting passenger figures will not return to levels seen in 2019 until at least 2024.

Airbus itself has previously said it expects to stop manufacturing the aircraft type this year, while only four were made last year.

Air France, Lufthansa and Qantas are among the other carriers to have outlined plans to curtail the use of the A380 following the Covid-19 pandemic.

All Nippon Airways was the last new customer to take delivery of a new A380 in 2019.

Just 14 years after its launch, in October 2007, it seems the end may already be in sight for the Airbus A380.