How big is a 26 MW offshore wind turbine next to an Airbus A380 seen from above?
A 26 MW offshore wind turbine measures 341 m (1,119 ft) across the rotor, and an Airbus A380 seen from above measures 72.7 m (238.6 ft) nose to tail. A 26 MW offshore wind turbine comes to 4.69 times the measured size of an Airbus A380 seen from above, a difference of 268.3 m (880.2 ft). The two are not judged on the same axis: a 26 MW offshore wind turbine is quoted as a rotor diameter and an Airbus A380 seen from above as a length, so the honest statement is one figure against the other, 21% of it, and not one outline against another. A 26 MW offshore wind turbine is written in hundreds of metres and an Airbus A380 seen from above in tens of metres, a whole band of scale apart.
| Object | Real size | Axis measured | What the figure covers |
|---|---|---|---|
| 26 MW Offshore Wind Turbine | 341 m 1,119 ft |
Rotor diameter | Dongfang, World’s Largest |
| Airbus A380 (Plan View) | 72.7 m 238.6 ft |
Length | A380-800, From Above |
Both figures, 26 MW Offshore Wind Turbine and Airbus A380 (Plan View), come from the Size It Up measurement set, one real-world size and one measured axis per object, last checked in September 2026; outline provenance is listed on the sources page.
Why this one is hard to judge by eye
A 26 MW offshore wind turbine is drawn about 3.14 times as wide as an Airbus A380 seen from above as well as 4.69 times its measured size, so the area it takes in the frame grows faster than the figure anyone quotes. Nothing this size arrives at the eye whole: a 26 MW offshore wind turbine reaches you as a small angle from wherever you can stand back far enough to see it, and the brain fills the rest in from what it expects, which is how 268.3 m of difference goes unnoticed.
What each figure covers
26 MW Offshore Wind Turbine. The figure is the rotor diameter of the largest offshore turbine yet built, not the height of the tower. A blade tip sweeps a circle wider than most cathedral naves are long.
Airbus A380 (Plan View). Seen from above, the aircraft is still judged on the 72.72 m from nose to tail. The plan view changes the outline, not the figure: the 79.75 m wingspan sits outside the quoted length, as it does on the side view.
A 26 MW offshore wind turbine is quoted as a rotor diameter and an Airbus A380 seen from above as a length: two conventions, so the ratio compares the two numbers rather than the two objects.