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Airbus announces the cancellation of an order for fifty A321neos with the airline Qatar Airways. A contract concluded 10 years ago for an amount of 4.6 billion dollars. This cancellation comes in the context of a legal dispute between the two groups concerning another model. Airbus announced its decision a few hours after the announcement by the British justice of the date of the first hearing, fixed during the week of April 26.
The dispute between Airbus and Qatar Airways concerns wear on the surface of the fuselages on some of its A350 jumbo jets. According to Qatar Airways, this degradation led to the immobilization on the ground of about twenty of its planes. A prejudice for the Qatari company which brought the dispute before the British courts.
Qatar Airways would ask Airbus for compensation of 618 million dollars, or 545 million euros. In this tense context, the Qatari company also refused to take delivery of several additional A350s.
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The European Aviation Safety Agency with Airbus
For its part, the European manufacturer refuses to pay, because it considers that the deterioration of the surfaces of the fuselages has no impact on the flight capacity of the aircraft. For Airbus, this defect does not justify the immobilization of the planes. Nor does it justify the refusal to accept delivery of the other jumbo jets ordered by Qatar Airways. Airbus relies on the conclusions of the European Aviation Safety Agency which support this.
Finally, the European manufacturer is asserting a default clause due to Qatar Airways’ refusal to take delivery of additional A350s, and thus justifies the cancellation of the order for the fifty A321neos.
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