IIn a dispute with Qatar Airways, European aircraft manufacturer Airbus has canceled all of the airline’s open orders for A350 aircraft, according to insiders. Airbus has informed the largest customer for the long-haul aircraft that the rest of the A350 aircraft will be taken off the books, the insiders told Reuters. At the end of June, Airbus still had orders for 19 A350 aircraft from Qatar on the books. Neither the aircraft manufacturer nor Qatar Airways could be reached for comment.
Qatar Airways was the first airline in the world to put the A350 into service in 2015. The airline has now sued Airbus for at least 1.4 billion euros in damages after local air traffic control ordered almost half of its A350 fleet to be grounded due to damage to the outer skin. Since then, Qatar Airways has refused to accept any further A350s on order and is demanding a solution to the skin problems. Airbus has admitted that there are quality defects in the aircraft, which, however, did not pose a safety risk.
At the end of May, a British court rejected the airline’s application for an injunction, after which Airbus wanted to stop deliveries to the state airline. Qatar So Airways had to move on Buy and pay for the A350 aircraft while the dispute in the courts continued.
