Tag: qatar (Page 2 of 3)

Qatar Agrees to Buy U.S. Aircraft, Engines, Defense Equipment

July 9, 2019 / WIL BALDWIN

(Bloomberg) — Qatar has made agreements with U.S. companies to spend billions on airplanes and jet engines and to develop a petrochemical complex, the White House said on Tuesday.

At least some of the deals were previously made but were publicly touted by the Trump administration Tuesday. Among them: Qatar Airways purchasing Boeing Co. 777 freighters and large-cabin aircraft from Gulfstream Aerospace, the private jet unit of General Dynamics Corp.

“They’re investing very heavily in our country,” Trump told reporters at the White House. “They’re creating a lot of jobs. They’re buying tremendous amounts of military equipment including planes.

Qatar’s defense ministry committed to acquire Raytheon Co.’s NASM and Patriot Systems, according to the White House. In addition, a unit of Chevron Corp. entered into an agreement with Qatar Petroleum for the development, construction and operation of a petrochemicals complex in Qatar.

The agreements, whose total cost wasn’t disclosed by the White House, were announced during a visit to the White House by the emir of Qatar, Sheikh Tamim Bin Hamad Al Thani.

The deals come amid a two-year economic blockade of Qatar led by U.S. ally Saudi Arabia and supported by nations including Egypt and the United Arab Emirates. Trump initially appeared to support the Saudi move — echoing its assertions that Qatar supported terrorists — even though it put the U.S. in an awkward position because it has a major military base in Qatar.

But Qatar has looked to improve relations in the U.S., with the emir saying the country was committed to doubling the economic partnership between the two countries. Mansoor bin Ebrahim Al Mahmoud, who leads the Qatar Investment Authority, said earlier this year that the country’s sovereign wealth fund will look to increase its U.S. investment portfolio from around $30 billion to about $45 billion over the next two years.

The country has also made significant gestures toward increasing its spending on U.S. defense contractors, with the U.S. approving a large weapons systems purchase ahead of Sheikh Tamim’s last visit to the country. In 2017, the country signed a deal to spend $12 billion for the purchase of 36 F-15QA fighter jets.

And the U.S. has announced plans to expand and renovate the al-Udeid Air Base near Doha, which houses the forward headquarters of the U.S. military’s Central Command and some 10,000 American troops. During a dinner with the leaders on Monday, Trump thanked Sheikh Tamim for Qatar’s $1.8 billion investment in the project which will be used to construct housing and entertainment facilities.

Several companies have released specifics of some of the agreements that were formalized on Tuesday.

Gulfstream said its deal is for $1 billion in corporate jets that General Dynamics announced in January without giving the customer’s name. Boeing said last month it made a deal to sell five 777 freighters at a list price of $1.8 billion.

Qatar Airways plans to use General Electric Co. jet engines for Boeing 787 and 777 aircraft, according to the White House.

A Chevron statement Tuesday said the company was signing a new agreement at the White House for a previously unannounced $8 billion U.S. Gulf Coast project. The White House statement mentions only a prior deal, announced last month, in which the company would join forces with Qatar Petroleum to build a facility in Qatar.

(Story by Justin Sink and Thomas Black, Edited by Alex Wayne, Justin Blum, and Larry Liebert)

Qatar Airways Says Air Italy Stake Is In Compliance

April 11, 2019 / WIL BALDWIN

DUBAI (Reuters) – State-owned Qatar Airways on Thursday dismissed concerns its 49 percent stake in Air Italy breaches a 2018 aviation agreement between the United States and Qatar, designed to address U.S. concerns that Gulf airlines had an unfair competitive advantage.

The U.S is “looking very closely” at the deal after Republicans and Democrats said on Wednesday they were concerned it violated the agreement.

Qatar Airways bought a stake in Italian airline Meridiana in 2017, rebranded it Air Italy and transformed it into a carrier with five announced non-stop U.S. destinations from Milan.

Qatar Airways said the stake was “fully compliant” with the 2018 U.S.-Qatar Understandings, an additional pact that accompanied the U.S-Qatar Open Skies agreement.

Since 2015 the largest U.S carriers – Delta Air Lines, American Airlines Group and United Airlines – have argued their Gulf rivals are being unfairly subsidized by their governments, distorting competition.

Gulf airlines have always denied those accusations and last year separate voluntary agreements were reached between the U.S. and Qatar, and the U.S. and the United Arab Emirates to address the concerns. Measures included the airlines not adding new flights to the U.S.

However, Air Italy has been flying to New York and Miami since June last year and was due to start serving San Francisco and Los Angeles from this month and Chicago in May.

Qatar Airways said in a statement its investment in Air Italy, which closed in September 2017, preceded the 2018 agreement but complied with it.

It said its investments in other airlines were not raised as a point of concern during the discussions that led to the 2018 agreement and that the deal does not mention or prohibit cross-border investments.

Qatar Airways also said it did not codeshare on Air Italy’s flights to the U.S. and has no plans to do so.

(Reporting by Alexander Cornwell; Editing by Alexandra Hudson)

Lufthansa Orders 40 Boeing 787-9, Airbus A350-900 Airplanes

March 13, 2019 / WIL BALDWIN

BERLIN (Reuters) – Lufthansa has ordered 20 Boeing 787-9 and 20 additional Airbus A350-900 long-haul planes to replace its older four-engine aircraft as it seeks to boost the fuel efficiency of its fleet, the airlines group said on Wednesday.

The German company said it has also agreed to sell six of its 14 Airbus A380 planes back to Airbus in 2022/2023 for economic reasons.

Airbus said last month it would scrap production of the A380 superjumbo from 2021 following lacklustre sales. The decision reflected a dearth of orders as airline bosses shied away from bulky, larger planes that are harder to fill.

Qatar airways said last week it would phase out its A380 planes from 2024.

Lufthansa said the new aircraft will be delivered between late 2022 and 2027. It did not disclose how much it had paid for the planes which have a list-price investment volume of $12 billion (9.1 billion pounds), but said it had negotiated a significant price cut.

“In addition to the cost-effectiveness of the A350 and B787, the significantly lower CO2 emissions of this new generation of long-haul aircraft was also a decisive factor in our investment decision,” Chief Executive Carsten Spohr said in a statement.

Lufthansa currently operates a long-haul fleet of 199 aircraft. It said the new, more economical aircraft will lower its operating cost compared to earlier models by around 20 percent.

The airline will also seek to reduce the complexity of its fleet over the next few years by taking seven aircraft types out of service to help reduce maintenance costs and the supply of replacement parts.

(Reporting by Caroline Copley; editing by Thomas Seythal and Michelle Martin)

Gulfstream To Showcase Aircraft At Aviation Africa 2019

February 20, 2019 / WIL BALDWIN

SAVANNAH, Ga., Feb. 20, 2019 /PRNewswire/ — Gulfstream Aerospace Corp. today announced it will showcase the clean-sheet, record-breaking Gulfstream G500 along with the class-leading, super-midsize Gulfstream G280 at the 2019 Aviation Africa Summit & Exhibition from Feb. 27-28 in Kigali, Rwanda. Gulfstream’s exhibition will be at the Radisson Blu Hotel & Convention Centre, and the aircraft will be on static display at Kigali International Airport.

“Gulfstream is committed to customers in sub-Saharan Africa and growing business aviation in the region,” said Mark Burns, president, Gulfstream. “Rwanda has made great investments in business aviation, and we are proud to support those efforts with our presence and static display in Kigali. Whether flying from country to country or intercontinentally, the G500 and G280 offer operators ideal options for this region.”

The award-winning G500 can fly 5,200 nautical miles/9,630 kilometers at its long-range cruise speed of Mach 0.85 and can easily connect Kigali to London at Mach 0.90 or Kigali to Singapore at Mach 0.87. When it entered service in September 2018, the G500 had already achieved 22 city-pair records around the world and currently holds a total of 32 city-pair records. The G500 that will be on display at Aviation Africa is in service with Qatar Airways’ Qatar Executive fleet.

The high-performing and agile G280 can fly 3,600 nm/6,667 km at Mach 0.80, and can travel nonstop from Kigali to Dubai, United Arab Emirates, at Mach 0.84 or Kigali to Bangalore, India, at Mach 0.80. The aircraft can easily access smaller airports, reach high altitudes quickly and offers excellent takeoff and landing performance.

NOTE TO EDITORS

Gulfstream Aerospace Corporation, a wholly owned subsidiary of General Dynamics (GD), designs, develops, manufactures, markets, services and supports the world’s most technologically advanced business-jet aircraft. Gulfstream has produced more than 2,800 aircraft for customers around the world since 1958. To meet the diverse transportation needs of the future, Gulfstream offers a comprehensive fleet of aircraft, comprising the Gulfstream G280^™, the Gulfstream G550^™, the Gulfstream G500^™, the Gulfstream G600^™, the Gulfstream G650^™and the Gulfstream G650ER^™. We invite you to visit our website for more information and photos at www.gulfstreamnews.com.

More information about General Dynamics is available at www.generaldynamics.com.

Airbus Helicopters sees strong sales increase in 2018

January 23, 2019 / WIL BALDWIN

Gross orders up 18 percent to 413 units
First orders for the next-generation H160
Increasing share of the military market

Marignane, 23 January 2019 – Airbus Helicopters delivered 356 rotorcraft and logged gross orders for 413 helicopters (net: 381) in 2018 (up from 350 gross orders in 2017), maintaining its lead in the civil & parapublic market while reinforcing its position in the military market thanks to key successes with international campaigns. The company also booked 148 orders for light twin-engine helicopters of the H135/H145 family and secured 15 orders for the next-generation H160. At the end of last year, the overall backlog increased to 717 helicopters.

“Our commercial performance in 2018 demonstrates the resilience we have developed as a company to help us navigate what remains a challenging environment,” said Bruno Even, Airbus Helicopters CEO. “Even though the civil & parapublic market remains at a low level worldwide, we have managed to maintain our global leadership thanks to our wide and modern portfolio of products and services and our international footprint. Meanwhile, we have increased our market share in the military sector by securing major contracts with leading armed forces worldwide, with best-in-class solutions. These positive trends give us the means to prepare the future and continue our transformation, with innovation at our core and customer loyalty at heart.”

In 2018, Airbus Helicopters delivered the first of 100 H135s for China in Qingdao, where a dedicated final assembly line will serve the growing demand of the Chinese market for civil & parapublic helicopters. Meanwhile, Hong Kong Government Flying Service took delivery of the first H175s in public services configuration.

Last year also proved successful for the Super Puma family which demonstrated its versatility by being selected in key military campaigns, while attracting new civil & parapublic customers with repurposed H225s previously operated on the oil & gas market. Likewise, 2018 proved to be a very positive year for the NH90, which attracted orders for 28 units in Qatar while being selected by Spain in the frame of a follow-on order for 23 units.

Key programme milestones were achieved in 2018, including the power-on and ground testing of the CityAirbus electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) technology demonstrator, ahead of a maiden flight expected early 2019. The first H160 in serial configuration entered flight trials in 2018, while the VSR700 unmanned aerial system demonstrator performed its first unmanned flights at the end of the year.

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. The FY 2017 backlog will not be restated.

Story and 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

Qatar Airways acquires 5% of China Southern Airlines

January 2, 2019 / WIL BALDWIN

DUBAI/BEIJING, Jan 2 (Reuters) – Qatar Airways has acquired a 5 percent stake in China Southern Airlines, the state-owned Gulf carrier said on Wednesday, in a move to gain access to the fast-growing mainland Chinese market.

Qatar Airways also owns a 20 percent stake in British Airways-parent International Consolidated Airlines Group, 10 percent of South America’s LATAM Airlines Group SA , 49 percent of Italy’s Meridiana and 9.99 percent stake in Hong Kong’s Cathay Pacific.

Qatar’s flagship airline has sought new partners and routes after it was blocked last year from flying to the lucrative markets of Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates because of restrictions imposed by those countries.

Saudi Arabia, UAE, Bahrain and Egypt, imposed a political and economic boycott on Qatar since June 2017, accusing it of supporting terrorism, which Doha denies.

China Southern in a separate statement said Qatar Airways may consider increasing its stake in the airline in the next 12 months. Qatar had no previous investment in the Chinese airline.

Qatar Airways is the second foreign carrier that has a stake in China Southern, after American Airlines. The Chinese carrier left the Skyteam airline alliance at the start of the year.

There are opportunities for “us to work together and build a long term relationship in ways that would bring benefits to customers of both airlines,” said Qatar Airways’ Chief Executive Akbar al-Baker.

Ajith K, director of Asia transport at UOB Kay Hian, said given that China Southern is the biggest competitor of Cathay Pacific in Greater China, this deal could strengthen the China Southern’s position at the Hong-Kong carrier’s expense. “Why Qatar is doing this, seems to me, one of course is to gain access to the Chinese market. Secondly it’s probably that they are hedging against their bet given they own almost 10 percent in Cathay Pacific.”

(Reporting by Asma Alsharif and Saeed Azhar in Dubai and Stella Qiu in Beijing; editing by Louise Heavens)

Image from http://www.boeing.com

Air Italy Flights Rekindle U.S. Carrier Anger

December 19, 2018 / WIL BALDWIN

ROME (Reuters) – Air Italy will start flying to Chicago next year, a move likely to revive a dispute between its minority shareholder Qatar Airways and U.S rivals trying to squeeze Gulf operators out of their domestic market.

Formerly known as Meridiana, Air Italy is the country’s second-largest airline, behind ailing Alitalia [CAITLA.UL], and state-owned Qatar Airways holds a 49 percent stake in it.

Air Italy will fly to Chicago three times a week from Milan Malpensa airport starting from May 14, 2019, Chief Operating Officer Rossen Dimitrov told Reuters.

Since 2015 the largest U.S carriers — Delta Air Lines (DAL.N), American Airlines Group (AAL.O) and United Airlines (UAL.N) — have argued their Gulf rivals are being unfairly subsidised by their governments, distorting competition.

Gulf airlines have always denied those accusations and in May the companies reached a voluntary agreement, saying they would not add new flights to the United States.

However, Air Italy has been flying to New York and Miami since June and will start serving San Francisco and Los Angeles from April 2019.

That has drawn criticism from an alliance of U.S.-based airlines grouped in the “Partnership for Open & Fair Skies”, that Qatar Airways is using Air Italy to offer additional flights between the U.S. and Europe, despite the agreement.

“Once again, Qatar is using Air Italy as a Trojan horse built from subsidized cash to avoid its commitments to the Trump administration and launch new … routes,” said Scott Reed, campaign manager for the Partnership for Open & Fair Skies.

In an emailed statement, Reed called on U.S. President Donald Trump to intercede on the behalf of U.S. airlines.

Dimitrov tried to dismiss any suggestion that Air Italy was acting improperly, noting that Qatar Airways was a minority shareholder.

“They do not dictate what we do and where we go. They do not manage us,” he said.

He added that he would be happy to work with the U.S airlines under code-share agreements, from which both sides would benefit, “rather than spending time and money fighting each other”.

The opening of the Chicago route next year is part of a wider plan, announced in May, in which the airline aims to grow its fleet and passenger numbers fourfold by 2022.

(Reporting by Giulia Segreti and Alberto Sisto; Editing by Keith Weir and Crispian Balmer)

Image from http://www.airitaly.com

Airbus & Boeing Deals @ Farnborough Airshow

July 18, 2018 / WIL BALDWIN

(Reuters) – Following is a summary of commercial aircraft deals announced by Airbus (AIR.PA) and Boeing (BA.N) at the Farnborough Airshow in southern England.

The two companies have so far signed deals worth more than $100 billion at current list prices. However, this is a gross number. Several of the deals firm up provisional ones, disclose previously unidentified buyers, or change existing orders, making it hard to gauge the level of new business.

AIRBUS DEALS – $57 billion

** GOLDEN FALCON AVIATION (for Wataniya Airways): confirmed an order for 25 Airbus A320neo jets for Kuwait’s Wataniya Airways worth about $2.8 billion at list prices.

** GOSHAWK AVIATION: a firm order for 20 Airbus A320neo jets worth about $2.2 billion at list prices.

** LEVEL (low cost of IAG): firm order for two A330-200s, worth around $477 million at list prices. https://bit.ly/2Jumrbv

** MACQUARIE FINANCE: ordered 20 A320neo jets in a deal worth about $2.2 billion at list prices.

** PEACH AVIATION: updated a previous deal for 10 A320neo, changing it to eight A320neo and two A321LR planes. The deal would be worth around $1.1 billion at list prices.

** SALAMAIR: signed an agreement to add six new A320neo aircraft to its fleet. The deal would be worth around $700 million at list prices.

** SICHUAN AIRLINES: ordered 10 Airbus A350 XWB jets, confirming a deal struck earlier this year. The order is worth about $3.2 billion at list prices.

** STARLUX AIRLINES: signed a preliminary deal for 17 Airbus A350 jets worth an estimated $6 billion at list prices.

** UGANDA AIRLINES: signed memorandum of understanding for two A330-800neo aircraft, worth around $0.5 billion at list prices.

** UNDISCLOSED CUSTOMER: order for 100 A320neo family aircraft worth about $11.5 billion at list prices.

** UNDISCLOSED CUSTOMER: a preliminary deal for 80 A320neo jets with a leasing firm. The deal would be worth around $8.8 billion at list prices.

** UNDISCLOSED CUSTOMER: has signed a commitment for six A330neo family aircraft. The deal would be worth around $1.6 billion based at current list prices. https://bit.ly/2uJJsBT

** U.S. AIRLINE START-UP: a commitment for 60 Airbus A220-300 aircraft worth about $5.5 billion at list prices.

** VISTARA: a letter of intent to buy 13 Airbus A320neo aircraft and commitment to taking a further 37 A320neos from leasing firms. The deal for all 50 aircraft would be worth around $5.5 billion at current list prices.

** VIVA AEROBUS: firmed up a deal for 25 incremental A321neo and 16 conversions of A320neos to A321neos. The 41 planes are worth around $5.3 billion at list prices.

BOEING DEALS – $82 billion

** AIR LEASE CORP (AL.N): committed to buy as many as 78 Boeing aircraft in a deal valued at $9.6 billion at list prices.

** AVIATION CAPITAL GROUP: order for 20 737 MAX 8 airplanes, valued at $2.34 billion at list prices.

** DHL: a $4.7 billion deal for four Boeing 777 Freighters, and purchase rights for seven additional freighters.

** GECAS: an agreement for 35 additional 737-800 Boeing Converted Freighters. The deal includes 20 firm orders and an option for 15 more. The deal for 35 aircraft would be worth around $3.6 billion at list prices. http://bit.ly/2mme2O5

** GOL AIRLINES: an order for 30 737 MAX 10 Airplanes, 15 MAX 8s. New agreement converts some MAX 8 orders to the larger MAX 10 model, adds 15 more jets. The deal for 45 aircraft would be worth $5.7 billion at current list prices.

** GOSHAWK AVIATION: an order for 20 737 MAX jets valued at $2.3 billion at current list prices.

** JACKSON SQUARE AVIATION: a firm deal to buy 30 737 MAX 8 aircraft, valued at about $3.5 billion at list prices.

** JET AIRWAYS: ordered an additional 75 737 MAX 8 airplanes valued at $8.8 billion at current list prices.

** QATAR AIRWAYS: finalised an order for five 777 Freighters, valued at $1.7 billion at list prices.

** SEACONS TRADING: ordered a Boeing Business Jet MAX 7, worth $96 million based on current list prices.

** TAROM ROMANIAN AIR TRANSPORT: a $586 million order for five 737 MAX 8 airplanes.

** UNITED AIRLINES (UAL.N): expanded its commitment to the 787 Dreamliner programme with an order for four more 787-9 planes, worth about $1.1 billion according to current list prices. https://bit.ly/2NXKYJw

** UNDISCLOSED CUSTOMERS: sign commitments for 40 High-Capacity 737 MAX 8s, 53 MAX 8 Airplanes, worth nearly $11 billion at current list prices

** VIETJET (VJC.HM): provisionally ordered 100 Boeing 737 MAX jets, worth about $12.7 billion at current list prices

** VISTARA: confirmed an order for six Boeing 787-9 Dreamliners, with an option to buy four more. The deal for the 10 planes would be worth about $2.8 billion at list prices.

** VOLGA DNEPR: committed to buying 29 of Boeing’s 777 freighter aircraft and five of its 747-8 freighter, in a deal worth about $11.8 billion at list prices.

(Compiled by Joao Manuel Mauricio, Katarzyna Piasecka and Anna Pruchnicka in Gdynia; Editing by Mark Potter)

Boeing Gets Farnborough 777-F Order

July 17, 2018 / WIL BALDWIN

The Farnborough International Airshow kicked off today, with Boeing Co. (NYSE: BA) 777 Freighters pushed to the limelight as logistics and airline companies finalized their orders for fleet expansion. The 777 Freighter is an all-cargo version of the 777-200 longer-range passenger liner. Boeing rolled out the first 777 Freighter in 2008, and the aircraft’s sales have been going strong ever since.

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Boeing Gets Farnborough 777-F Order

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