Category: Airbus news (Page 39 of 48)

Airbus Seeks Hefty Cost Cuts for A220 Jet

January 14, 2019 / WIL BALDWIN

MONTREAL (Reuters) – Europe’s Airbus is looking for a “significant double-digit” percentage reduction in costs for a recently acquired Canadian jet program, as it expands production capacity to cope with anticipated demand for the former Bombardier jet.

Philippe Balducchi, head of an Airbus-led venture which took over production of the loss-making A220 last year, indicated the bulk of the reduction in costs would come from the supply chain as Airbus uses its greater clout in negotiations for parts.

Other savings would come from more efficient operations as workers gain experience of building the lightweight 110-130-seat jet, whose deliveries doubled to 33 aircraft last year.

But overall economies will go “way beyond” what Airbus can achieve internally on the assembly line, Balducchi said.

“Our focus is to sell, ramp up (production) and reduce costs on the A220,” Rob Dewar, head of engineering and customer support, added during a media briefing on the jet, which was known as the CSeries until Airbus took control in July 2018.

The A220 consortium, which also includes Bombardier and the Quebec government, is spending some $30 million to expand its Mirabel production plant outside Montreal and will break ground this week on a new assembly line in Alabama for U.S. airlines.

Airbus meanwhile said the Canadian-developed A220 jet had won approval to fly up to three hours away from the nearest airport in the event of a shutdown of one of its two engines – a safety standard which underpins its use on longer-range routes.

The green light has been given by Canada, while approvals in the United States and Europe are pending, Airbus officials said.

The extended operations or ETOPS approval affects the number of routes the plane can fly over water or remote areas.

(Reporting by Tim Hepher; editing by Richard Lough and Jan Harvey)

Image from http://www.airbus.com

Etihad Reaches Deal for Rescue of India’s Jet Air

January 14, 2019 / WIL BALDWIN

(Bloomberg) — Etihad Airways PJSC has agreed to lead a rescue of cash-strapped Jet Airways India Ltd. in a move that will see the Abu Dhabi-based carrier double its stake to 49 percent, according to television reports.

Etihad is in talks to lift its holding from the current 24 percent, India’s BTVI channel reported Monday, citing unidentified people familiar with the matter. CNBC-TV18 said that Jet founder Naresh Goyal’s stake could drop to 20 percent from 51 percent, and that he’ll stand down as chairman.

Shares of Jet Airways closed 16 percent higher in Mumbai, where it is based. The company ranks as India’s biggest full-service airline, but has failed to post a profit in nine of the past 11 fiscal years. Cash is running short as fare wars depress revenue and turbulent oil prices increase costs.

An increase in Etihad’s Jet stake would come at a time when the Persian Gulf carrier is cutting thousands of jobs and shrinking its fleet amid mounting losses from over-expansion and failed investments. India remains an attractive prospect because of the size of its travel market and the pace of growth.

Etihad said in an email that it does not comment on rumor or speculation.

Jet didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment, though it said in a filing earlier that it had made no decision requiring a stock-market disclosure. People with knowledge of the matter said last week that the airline is seeking funds from investors including Etihad.

The deal, if it goes through, will give the third-biggest Mideast carrier more say over Jet’s operations and its day-to-day management, with Goyal’s voting rights capped at 10 percent, BTVI said. Indian regulations cap airline ownership by foreign operators at 49 percent, and also prohibit them from taking control.

Etihad, which lost $3.5 billion over two years, last week scrapped orders for 10 Airbus SE A320neo aircraft and revealed plans to cut 50 pilot posts this month. Chief Executive Officer Tony Douglas has put the brakes on a costly bid to challenge bigger Gulf rivals Emirates and Qatar Airways, saying he’ll focused more on local needs rather than carrying passengers between continents.

–With assistance from Layan Odeh and Sam Nagarajan.

To contact the reporter on this story: Anurag Kotoky in London at akotoky@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Anand Krishnamoorthy at anandk@bloomberg.net, ;Anthony Palazzo at apalazzo@bloomberg.net, Christopher Jasper, John Bowker

For more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com

Image from http://www.boeing.com

Airbus achieves new commercial aircraft delivery record in 2018

January 10, 2019 / WIL BALDWIN

Deliveries total 800 aircraft, 11 percent higher than in 2017
Net orders total 747, backlog increases to 7,577 aircraft

Airbus SE (stock exchange symbol: AIR) delivered 800 commercial aircraft to 93 customers in 2018, meeting its full year delivery guidance and setting a new company record. Deliveries were 11 percent higher than the previous record of 718 units, set in 2017. For the 16th year in a row now, Airbus has increased the number of commercial aircraft deliveries on an annual basis.

In total, the 2018 commercial aircraft deliveries comprise:

20 A220s (since it became part of the Airbus family in July 2018);
626 A320 Family (vs 558 in 2017), of which 386 were A320neo Family (vs 181 NEOs in 2017);
49 A330s (vs 67 in 2017) including the first three A330neo in 2018;
93 A350 XWBs (vs 78 in 2017);
12 A380s (vs 15 in 2017).

In terms of sales, Airbus achieved 747 net orders during 2018 compared with 1,109 net orders in 2017. At the end of 2018, the backlog of Airbus commercial aircraft reached a new industry record and stood at 7,577 aircraft, including 480 A220s, compared with 7,265 at the end of 2017.

“Despite significant operational challenges, Airbus continued its production ramp-up and delivered a record number of aircraft in 2018. I salute our teams around the globe who worked until the end of the year to meet our commitments,” said Guillaume Faury, President Airbus Commercial Aircraft. “I am equally pleased about the healthy order intake as it shows the underlying strength of the commercial aircraft market and the trust our customers are placing in us. My gratitude goes out to all of them for their ongoing support.” He added: “As we look to further increase our industrial efficiency, we will continue making the digitalisation of our business a key priority.”

Over the last 16 years, Airbus has steadily increased its production year-by-year with the final assembly lines in Hamburg, Toulouse, Tianjin and Mobile complemented by the addition of the A220 line in Mirabel, Canada, during 2018. A notable contribution to Airbus’ delivery increase in 2018 came from the final assembly lines in the US and China. For the top-selling A320 Family in particular, the Final Assembly Line (FAL) in Mobile, Alabama, saw its 100^th delivery, and is now producing in excess of four units per month. Meanwhile, Airbus’ “FAL Asia” in Tianjin, China, achieved its 400^th A320 delivery, while in Germany Airbus commenced operations of its new, fourth production line in Hamburg. Overall, the A320 programme is on track to achieve rate 60 per month for the A320 Family by mid-2019. The Airbus teams successfully reached an important industrial milestone for the A350, achieving the targeted rate of 10 aircraft per month.

Airbus will report Full Year 2018 financial results on 14 February 2019.

Footnote:
The Full-Year 2018 net orders and backlog represent the contractual view. The Full-Year 2018 backlog value will be measured under IFRS 15 and will reflect the recoverable amount of revenues under these contracts. A significant reduction in order backlog value is expected mainly due to the adjustment for net prices versus list prices. The FY 2017 backlog will not be restated.

Story and image from http://www.airbus.com

Airbus Loses 2018 Jet Order Race to Boeing

January 9, 2019 / WIL BALDWIN

PARIS (Reuters) – Europe’s Airbus lost out to Boeing in 2018, breaking a five-year winning streak against its U.S. rival for the number of jet orders, slumping to its lowest share of the $150 billion jet market in six years, data showed on Wednesday.

Airbus posted 747 net 2018 orders, down 33 percent from the previous year, including 135 for the A220 jetliner which it took over from Canada’s Bombardier in July. Boeing beat Airbus for the first time since 2012 with 893 net orders.

Airbus delivered 800 jets, up 11 percent, including 20 of the small A220 model, leaving Boeing as the world’s largest planemaker by manufacturing volume for a seventh straight year.

Although Boeing missed its delivery target and Airbus had previously lowered its target due to strains on the industry’s global supply chain, strong demand for passenger jets expanded total deliveries by 8 percent, the fastest pace in six years.

Planemaking chief Guillaume Faury welcomed the deliveries, which set a company record, and a “healthy order intake,” with waiting lists for many new jets stretching for up to 7 years.

Insiders say the quest for new business has, however, been overshadowed in the past year by industrial problems, management changes and morale problems coinciding with a corruption probe.

A resurgent Boeing has been cashing in on greater availability and declining costs for its 787 Dreamliner, while struggling to contain its European rival in the lucrative segment for large narrowbody jets just above 200 seats.

The order figures underscore Airbus’s decision to take over the lightweight but loss-making Bombardier CSeries aircraft, generating 135 orders worth $12 billion at list prices.

Without that boost, Airbus took just 41 percent of the core market in which it competes with Boeing, the lowest since 2009.

Highlighting the pressure Airbus has been facing recently in the market for large, high-margin wide-body jets, the European company was outsold three to one by Boeing for a second year.

However it reached a targeted production rate of 10 aircraft a month for its wide-body A350, which competes with the 787 and larger 777, at the end of the year, company officials said.

Airbus also trimmed the order list for its slow-selling A380 superjumbo, officially cancelling an order for 10 from Hong Kong Airlines four years after Reuters first reported that the airline had axed the deal, triggering financial negotiations.

The world’s largest airliner is mostly dependent on Dubai’s Emirates as Airbus slows production to a trickle in the hope of a future upturn, though many airlines are for now backing smaller jets.

(Reporting by Tim Hepher, Editing by Dominique Vidalon and Elaine Hardcastle)

Image from http://www.boeing.com

JetBlue Airways Firms Order for 60 Airbus A220-300’s

January 8, 2019 / WIL BALDWIN

JetBlue Airways has firmed up an order for 60 A220-300 aircraft, the larger model of the new, industry-leading A220 series.

“As we approach our 20th anniversary, the impressive range and economics of the highly efficient A220, combined with the outstanding performance of our existing fleet of Airbus A321 and restyled A320 aircraft, will help ensure we deliver the best onboard experience to customers and meet our long-term financial targets as we continue disciplined growth into the future,” said Robin Hayes, Chief Executive Officer, JetBlue.

JetBlue’s existing Airbus fleet includes 193 A320 and A321ceo aircraft in operation, with an additional 85 A321neo aircraft on order.

“JetBlue has proven there is no contradiction between economic efficiency and a high quality product,” said Christian Scherer, Airbus Chief Commercial Officer. “Their endorsement of the A220 proves this aircraft meets those two criteria better than any alternative in its segment. Thank you JetBlue and congratulations on this big milestone in your growth.”

The order was completed the last week of December. Airbus will produce the A220-300 aircraft at a new U.S. assembly facility in Mobile, Alabama. Construction of the plant, to be located adjacent to the existing Airbus A320 assembly facility, will begin later this month.

The A220 is the only aircraft purpose built for the 100-150 seat market; it delivers unbeatable fuel efficiency and true widebody comfort in a single-aisle aircraft. The A220 brings together state-of-the-art aerodynamics, advanced materials and Pratt & Whitney’s latest-generation PW1500G geared turbofan engines to offer at least 20 percent lower fuel burn per seat compared to previous generation aircraft. With a range of up to 3,200 nm (5,020 km), the A220 offers the performance of larger single-aisle aircraft.

With an order book of more than 500 aircraft to date, the A220 has all the credentials to win the lion’s share of the 100- to 150-seat aircraft market estimated to represent at least 7,000 aircraft over the next 20 years.

@JetBlue #A220 #Airbus

Story and image from http://www.airbus.com

China’s ICBC Firms Up Order for 80 Airbus Jets

January 7, 2019 / WIL BALDWIN

PARIS (Reuters) – China’s ICBC Financial Leasing has firmed up an order for 80 Airbus (AIR.PA) A320-family jets worth $8.8 billion (£6.9 billion) at list prices, industry sources said on Monday.

The move is part of a buying spree from Asian lessors in the final hours of 2018 as Japanese-owned SMBC Aviation reached agreement for some 65 Airbus jets and Hong Kong-based China Aircraft Leasing (CALC) ordered 50 737 MAX from Boeing (BA.N).

Airbus declined comment. ICBC was not immediately available for comment.

(Reporting by Tim Hepher; Editing by Sudip Kar-Gupta)

Image from http://cn.linkedin.com

Avianca Seeks To Cut Airbus Order In Half

December 11, 2018 / WIL BALDWIN

BOGOTA (Reuters) – Airline Avianca Holdings SA (AVT_p.CN) will begin negotiations with Airbus (AIR.PA) to reduce the 100 planes it had agreed to purchase in a 2015 deal to as few as 50, the chief executive of the Latin American company said.

Avianca was also seeking a strategic alliance with German airline Lufthansa (LHAG.DE), CEO Hernan Rincon said late on Sunday, part of its bid to expand in Europe.

Avianca representatives will travel to France in the coming days for re-negotiations with Airbus, Rincon said. Avianca had agreed to buy 100 A320neo planes to modernize its fleet.

“Of those 100, we’ll probably receive between 50 and 80 planes,” he said. “We don’t have any doubt that we will keep growing, what has changed is the rhythm of the growth.”

Technological advancement is part of the reason for the airline wanting to reduce its purchases, Rincon added.

“The rhythm of technology is changing, it will take a while to get all of the order and we don’t want to have a commitment to planes with today’s technology which will be received by us in 10 or 15 years,” he said.

A reduction in the original order, which was set to cost $10 billion, will also give Avianca some financial breathing room, Rincon added.

At the end of last month Avianca, United Continental Holdings Inc (UAL.O) and Copa Airlines of Panama said they had finalized a three-way joint venture that will allow them to plan routes and fares together and share revenues on those routes.

United, Avianca and Copa are already codeshare partners and Star Alliance members.

“We’ve started conversations with Lufthansa, but its very embryonic,” said Rincon. “We hope to reach an agreement to benefit our passengers in Europe, which is a relevant and growing market.”

The deal with Lufthansa would be similar to the one just agreed with United and Copa, Rincon added.

Under the United and Copa agreement, United said it would provide a $456 million term loan to cash-strapped Avianca’s top shareholder, Synergy Group Corp. Loss-making Avianca has a roughly $4 billion debt pile, of which 40 percent is due within the next two years, according to recent financial statements.

That deal still has to be approved by regulators.

Avianca will also start operating a regional subsidiary in Colombia in 2019, meant to serve medium and small-sized cities with 12 ATR 42 planes. The planes are already part of Avianca’s fleet, Rincon said.

(Reporting by Luis Jaime Acosta; Writing by Julia Symmes Cobb; Editing by Helen Murphy and Marguerita Choy)

Air Lease Places Two New Airbus A321neo’s With Air Macau

December 5, 2018 / WIL BALDWIN

LOS ANGELES–(BUSINESS WIRE)–

Today Air Lease Corporation (NYSE: AL; “ALC”) announced a long-term lease agreement for two new Airbus A321neo aircraft with Air Macau. Featuring Pratt & Whitney PW1133G engines, the aircraft will deliver from ALC’s order book with Airbus in November 2019 and the first quarter of 2020.

“ALC has worked closely with Air Macau’s management team since 2010 and we are pleased to strengthen our long-standing relationship with the airline with this announcement today,” said Steven F. Udvar-Házy, Executive Chairman of Air Lease Corporation. “We are committed to providing the most modern, fuel-efficient aircraft to ALC customers and these two new A321neo aircraft will significantly enhance Air Macau’s fleet operations.”

“We are honored to announce the placement of these two new A321neo aircraft with Air Macau today,” said Jie Chen, Executive Vice President and Managing Director, Asia of Air Lease Corporation. “ALC values our relationship with the airline and these two new placements contribute to our long-term association.”

“Air Macau is thrilled to announce the placement of these two new A321neo aircraft with ALC,” said Chen Hong, Chief Executive Officer of Air Macau. “We are focused on continually enhancing and modernizing our fleet with the very best aircraft available, and these two new A321neo from ALC are key to optimizing our fleet development.”

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, including expected delivery dates. Such statements are based on current expectations and projections about our future results, prospects and opportunities and are not guarantees of future performance. Such statements will not be updated unless required by law. Actual results and performance may differ materially from those expressed or forecasted in forward-looking statements due to a number of factors, including those discussed in our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

About Air Lease Corporation (AL)

ALC is a leading aircraft leasing company based in Los Angeles, California that has airline customers throughout the world. ALC and its team of dedicated and experienced professionals are principally engaged in purchasing commercial aircraft and leasing them to its airline customers worldwide through customized aircraft leasing and financing solutions. For more information, visit ALC’s website at www.airleasecorp.com.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20181205005223/en/

Icelandair Group’s Acquisition Of Wow Air Cancelled

November 30, 2018 / WIL BALDWIN

Icelandair has released the following statement regarding the mutual decision to cancel Icelandair’s takeover of Wow Air:

November 29, 2018 04:00 ET | Source: Icelandair Group hf.

The acquisition of Icelandair Group of Wow air, based on a purchase agreement signed on November 5th, has been cancelled. Both parties agree on this outcome.

Icelandair Group hf. issued a stock exchange release last Monday, November 26th, stating that the company estimated that it would be unlikely that all of the conditions in the share purchase agreement would be fulfilled by the shareholders’ meeting on November 30th. That situation remains unchanged.
Therefore, it is unlikely that the Board of Directors of Icelandair Group can recommend to the shareholders that they agree to the purchase agreement. Furthermore, the Board does not intend to submit to the shareholders’ meeting a proposal to postpone decision-making on the purchase agreement.

Due to this this situation, both parties agree to abandon the aforementioned purchase agreement.
Icelandair Group will hold its shareholders’ meeting on Friday, November 30, as previously announced. An authorisation proposal for the Board to increase the share capital of Icelandair Group is on the agenda of the shareholders’ meeting.

Bogi Nils Bogason, Interim President & CEO of Icelandair Group:
“The planned acquisition of Icelandair Group of Wow air will not go through. The Board of Directors and management of both companies have worked on this project in earnest. This conclusion is certainly disappointing. We want to thank WOW air‘s management for a good cooperation in the project during recent weeks . All our best wishes go out to the owners and staff of the Wow air. “

Skúli Mogensen, CEO and Founder of Wow air:
“It was clear at the outset that it was an ambitious task to complete all the conditions of the share purchase agreement in this short period. We thank the Icelandair Group’s management team for this challenging project, and also wish the management and staff of Icelandair Group all the best.”

Further information:
Bogi Nils Bogason, Interim President & CEO
bogi@icelandairgrop.is

Following the news of the cancelled deal, it has been reported that budget airline roup Indigo Partners has agreed to buy a stake in the struggling discount carrier.

Click the link below for the full Indigo Partners-Wow Air story!

Indigo Partners invests in Wow Air

Airbus Hints At Decision On Proposed A321XLR

November 26, 2018 / WIL BALDWIN

TOULOUSE, France (Reuters) – The incoming chief executive of Europe’s Airbus hinted on Monday at a decision next year on whether to launch the A321XLR, a longer-range version of its best-selling A321 single-aisle jet.

Asked on the sidelines of a delivery ceremony in Toulouse whether Airbus planned to launch the proposed new variant, planemaking chief and CEO-designate Guillaume Faury said: “I will be more precise in 2019.”

He declined further comment on the reported project.

Reuters first reported in June that Airbus is considering adding extra endurance to the longest-range version of its A321 as part of efforts to pre-empt a potential new mid-market jet being studied by U.S. rival Boeing (BA.N).

Next year is also when Boeing intends to make a decision on the future of that project.

Airbus’s proposed new A321XLR would carry extra fuel and expand the range of the A321LR aircraft, which recently claimed a long-distance record for single-aisle jets in testing.

Faury is due to step up from the planemaking business to replace Tom Enders as CEO of Europe’s largest aerospace group in April 2019.

(Reporting by Tim Hepher; Editing by Luke Baker)

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