Stage victory for Qatar Airways: A court prohibits Airbus from continuing to place the A321 Neo ordered by the airline. The termination of the contract is thus put on hold for the time being.
A few weeks ago, Airbus surprised the whole industry. The aircraft manufacturer announced an order from Qatar Airways for 50 Airbus A321 Neo to cancel. Manufacturers rarely cancel an order. The move was preceded by a long dispute between the companies over damage to the Gulf Airline’s Airbus A350.
Qatar Airways quickly made it clear that Airbus’ termination would not simply be accepted. The aircraft manufacturer was not only met with understanding in other respects either. Iata general director Willie Walsh said clearly he did care about fair competition. He knows many airlines who would like to terminate their contracts because they are not doing well financially. Qatar is not one of them.
Airbus disabled
Allegations were also made that this would give Airbus the opportunity to quickly sell the Airbus A321 Neo to other customers. The model is in demand, the delivery slots are tight. They are accordingly valuable.
The argument also appears to have come into play in a London court. The legal dispute between the two companies is being carried out in the British metropolis. According to the news channel Al Jazeera, a judge ruled that Airbus was not allowed to act in accordance with the contract termination until further notice. This means that the aircraft manufacturer must continue to keep the delivery slots available for Qatar Airways.
long quarrel
The decision will initially apply until the next court date on April 4, when Qatar Airways plans to seek an injunction to restore the contract. On April 26, the court will then deal with the actual dispute, which revolves around the long-haul jet A350.
The rift began when Qatar Airways Fuselage coating of the Airbus A350 as defective had criticized. After initially only problems with the paint were mentioned, at some point lightning protection also became an issue. Qatar’s aviation authority grounded 21 of the national airline’s A350s.
Airbus escalated
Airbus defended itself against the allegations from the start. Problems with the paint have also arisen with other airlines such as Finnair and Lufthansa. But that has no impact on security. The aircraft manufacturer said at the end of last year that the allegations were to be examined in court.
Qatar Airways just ignited the next stage and sued Airbus in a London court. The airline, which says it is retrieving Airbus A380s to replace capacity lost due to the grounding, is seeking more than $700 million in compensation for the A350’s unserviceability — $618 million by December 17 and an additional $4.2 million for each additional Day. The final escalation followed with Airbus terminating the contract.