Airbus A380 Flies to Shannon, Ireland for Paint Job

Earlier today, Lufthansa flew an empty Airbus A380 to Shannon, Ireland. Reports suggest that the aircraft is due to be painted, suggesting that it could be the latest jet to sport Lufthansa’s special 100th anniversary livery. The aircraft in question is D-AIMH, an A380 based out of Munich Airport in Germany.

Throughout 2026, Lufthansa is celebrating 100 years since the flying crane brand was established. Though today’s airline is not the same airline as 1926, the name is the same. A key pillar of this celebration sees Lufthansa painting six aircraft in a special dark blue livery, taking the celebration across the globe.

D-AIMH Has Flown To Shannon, Ireland

A digital map of Western Europe showing a flight path tracking to Ireland from Southern Germany. The path ends near Limerick, Ireland, indicated by a blue pin, and travels southeast across the Irish Sea, Wales, and Southern England. The line continues over the English Channel, Belgium, and Luxembourg, starting at another blue pin in Augsburg, near Munich, Germany. The flight path is represented by a multi-colored line that transitions from green to blue, pink, red, and purple, with a small yello

At 9:57 am, D-AIMH took to the skies above Munich. Flying under the ferry flight number LH9900, the aircraft climbed to 43,000 feet unhindered by the usual weight of passengers and cargo. According to Flightradar24, it landed in Shannon, Ireland, at 11:03 am, giving a flight time of just over two hours.

According to aviation.flights, the aircraft has flown to Shannon to be repainted. It’s unconfirmed whether the giant aircraft is getting the 100 Years livery, but given the timing, it seems highly likely. Simple Flying has reached out to Lufthansa for comment. Airport Director of Shannon Airport, Niall Kearns, commented,

“It’s always exciting for the public when a big plane like the A380 flies into Shannon, and it’s very impressive sitting on the runway, dwarfing more regular aircraft… This Airbus A380 is rarely seen in Ireland, and we’re delighted to welcome it back.”

Given the huge size of the Airbus A380, there are only a handful of facilities capable of painting the giant aircraft. International Aerospace Coatings (IAC) in Shannon has one of the facilities capable of this. It’s not just the size of the hangar that matters, but also the equipment inside.

3 Of 6 Lufthansa Jets Already Have The Special Livery

Credit: Lufthansa

In late November, Lufthansa revealed that six aircraft would be painted with the dark blue 100 Years livery. So far three of these have joined the fleet, starting with a Boeing 787 delivered fresh from Boeing just before Christmas. The aircraft due to be repainted are,

Aircraft Type	Registration	Repaint Location	Notes
Airbus A320neo	D-AING	Norwich, UK	Landed in Frankfurt on January 19th
Airbus A350-900	D-AIXL	Châteauroux, France	Due in Munich on February 3rd
Airbus A350-1000	Unknown	N/A	Will be delivered new in October 2026
Airbus A380	D-AINH(?)	Shannon, Ireland (?)	Not confirmed
Boeing 747-8	Unknown	N/A	N/A
Boeing 787-9	D-ABPU	Seattle, USA	Delivered new in special livery on December 23rd

Interestingly, Lufthansa is not expected to complete the aircraft repaints until Fall 2026, despite seemingly getting ahead of the curve on repaints. The Airbus A350-1000 has not yet entered the fleet. The first of these will be delivered in the special livery, currently expected in October 2026.

Lufthansa has been tight-lipped about which aircraft are getting the new livery, telling Simple Flying that they will communicate the new additions as and when they are ready to join the fleet. It is, however, not easy to hide an Airbus A380 from eagle-eyed plane spotters in 2026.

Lufthansa Boeing 787-9 aircraft in a special livery

Cool: Lufthansa Will Paint The A380 & Boeing 747 In Special Liveries

The airline is also painting its A350s, A320s, as well as Boeing 787s.

Shannon Is No Stranger To 100 Years Liveries

Credit: British Airways

Interestingly, this is not the first time that IAC has been tasked with applying a special 100-year livery in Shannon. The company previously worked with British Airways to repaint four aircraft in retro liveries from the airline’s history in 2019. This included three Boeing 747s and an Airbus A319.

Only the Airbus A319 was repainted at IAC’s facility in Shannon. It was given a British European Airways livery. The three Boeing 747-400s were given the BOAC, Negus, and Landor liveries at IAC’s Dublin site. Unfortunately, these special jumbo jet liveries were short-lived as COVID forced British Airways to retire them just months later.