PARIS, Jan 7 ― Qatar Airways is seeking more than US$600 million in compensation from Airbus over surface flaws on A350 jetliners, according to a court document shedding new light on an escalating business feud worth US$4 million a day.
Qatar Airways says its national regulator has ordered it to stop flying 21 out of its 53 A350 jets as problems appeared, prompting a bitter dispute with Airbus which has said that while it acknowledges technical problems, there is no safety issue. The claim includes US$76 million for one aircraft alone - a five-year-old A350 that was due to be re-painted in livery for the 2022 World Cup, which Qatar is hosting later this year.
The jets feature a layer of copper mesh under the paint to prevent lightning ― which strikes planes on average once a year ― from damaging the carbon-composite fuselage, which is lighter but less conductive than traditional metal.Airbus said it understood the cause and would “deny in total” the airline's complaint. It has accused the airline, once one of its most highly courted customers, of trying to mischaracterise the problems as a safety concern.
But the 30-page complaint details an unusual collapse of relations between two of aviation's most powerful players. It said the QCAA had told the airline that the deterioration of airplanes was “disturbing, if not alarming.” The regulator had also said it was “deeply concerned” that safety could be compromised because of a lack of analysis or permanent fix.