Gone are the days of handshakes between Akbar al Baker, the boss of Qatar Airways, and the leaders of Airbus. Today, the airline and the European manufacturer settle their differences through press releases. Their dispute has been going on for several months and concerns the Qataris’ A350 fleet, which accuses the aircraft manufacturer of degrading the surface of the fuselages.
Wear which, according to Airbus, does not call into question the safety of its aircraft. But Qatar Airways grounded twenty-two of its fifty-three A350s and decided to launch legal proceedings against Airbus in the UK. This Monday, the company again accused the aircraft manufacturer of blocking efforts to solve their problem. “Neither Qatar Airways nor its legal team are aware of any efforts made by Airbus to attempt to resolve the situation amicably. In reality, it’s quite the opposite, ”she said in a press release, in response to comments made by Airbus CEO Guillaume Faury. The latter assured that his teams were trying to “resolve the situation amicably”.
Justice decision
Qatar Airways wants British justice to require Airbus to “conduct a full, adequate and transparent investigation into the accelerated degradation of the surface” of this aircraft. It claimed compensation of 618 million dollars (552 million euros), together with a penalty of 4 million dollars (3.6 million euros) per additional day of immobilization of its A350s.
It has also just obtained an injunction preventing Airbus from canceling other contracts, before the decision of the London court, next April. In January, the aircraft manufacturer terminated the contract for fifty A321 aircraft which linked it to Qatar Airways.