Airbus set to compensate China Southern
(China Daily)
Updated: 2006-10-12 09:06 China Southern Airlines, the only Chinese customer
for the A380, is likely to get US$250 million in compensation from Airbus due to
the delayed delivery of the superjumbo jet, a Chinese newspaper reported
yesterday.
The Beijing News quoted an unnamed insider as saying that the compensation
could possibly help China Southern get back into the black.
Neither Airbus nor China Southern confirmed the report.
The Guangzhou-based airline ordered five A380s last year and was expected to
receive the first one at the end of 2007 and the second in 2008. The two jets
were planned to serve the 2008 Beijing Olympics. The airline reported a net loss
of 825 million yuan (US$104 million) in the first half of this year.
Airbus is working on the fuselages of two A380 jets ordered by China
Southern, which are currently being assembled in Hamburg, Germany.
Airbus said last week that the A380 delivery would be further delayed, the
second announcement of a delay in less than six months. Fellow A380 customer
Singapore Airlines will receive its first jet in October next year, 10 months
behind schedule. Airbus has slashed its delivery targets to 13 in 2008 and 25 in
2009.
The company said the delay was caused by problems with the installation of
the 480 kilometres of wiring aboard each plane.
Christian Streiff resigned on Monday as chief executive of Airbus. He is the
second top official to step down due to the A380 delivery delay. Gustav Humbert
resigned after the announcement in June.
(China Daily 10/12/2006 page10)
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