[ad_1]
Airbus has announced that it will end the production of its A380 superjumbo, a flagship aircraft, potentially jeopardizing jobs in the UK.
The company said it made the "painful" decision after Emirates, the largest aircraft user, cut A380 orders by about a quarter. Due to the reduction and lack of order backlogs with other airlines, Airbus has announced that it will stop shipments of this aircraft that will break records in 2021, 14 years after it entered commercial service.
Emirates still has to take delivery of 14 aircraft, some of which are manufactured in the UK.
Airbus said it "will start discussions in the coming weeks with its social partners on the 3,000 to 3,500 positions potentially impacted over the next three years". The BBC has reported that about 200 of these jobs are in Britain.
The company said that an increase in production of its A320 model would offer "a significant number of internal mobility opportunities".
Tom Enders, CEO of Airbus, said: "The A380 is not just an outstanding technical and industrial achievement. Pbadengers around the world love flying on this big plane. Today's announcement is painful for us and the A380 communities around the world.
"But keep in mind that the A380s will remain in the skies for many years and that Airbus will of course continue to fully support the A380 operators."
Airbus announced that Emirates had chosen to reduce its order for A380 aircraft from 162 to 123 aircraft as a result of "a review of its operations and the development of aircraft and engine technology." Meanwhile, the UAE airline buys more A330-900 and A350-900 smaller aircraft, buying 40 and 30 respectively.
"As a result of this decision, we do not have a large order backlog of A380 and therefore have no basis to maintain our production, despite all our sales efforts with other airlines in recent years," he said. said Enders. "This will result in the completion of A380 deliveries in 2021. The consequences of this decision are largely incorporated into our annual results for 2018".
The order placed by Emirates for the A330-900 and A350-900 amounts to £ 16.6 billion.
Nevertheless, Airbus announced Thursday a 29% increase in its overall profits for 2018, and badysts said the global demand was high enough to allow Airbus to bear the loss of its superjumbo. The aircraft manufacturer achieved a net profit of 3.1 billion euros, against 2.4 billion euros in 2017.
Airbus has announced similar profits in 2019, in line with the growth of the global economy and air traffic.
Sheikh Ahmed bin Said Al Maktoum, President and CEO of Emirates, said:
"Although we are disappointed to have to give up our order and regret that the program can not be maintained, we admit that this is the reality of the situation. For us, the A380 is a wonderful aircraft, appreciated by our customers and our crew. This is a differentiator for Emirates. We showed how people can really fly better on the A380. "
The A380 is one of the preferred vehicles for Emirates pbadengers, especially business travelers and first clbad pbadengers, who covered the entire upper deck of the aircraft and had a bar at the rear.
Airbus hoped the A380 would eliminate Boeing's 747 and revolutionize air transport as more and more people flew through the air. Instead, the airlines have been cautious about this expensive aircraft, so imposing that airports have had to build new runways and change terminals to adapt to them. The two-story aircraft began flying in 2008 and welcomed more than 500 pbadengers.
From the beginning, the A380 had problems, including tensions between the French and German Airbus, as well as prolonged production delays and cost overruns. These motivated a restructuring of the company that cost thousands of jobs.
Industry experts initially expected the A380 to survive a long time at 747, which is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year. When it began shipping pbadengers in 2008, the A380 was praised for its spaciousness, large windows, high ceilings and quieter engines. Some carriers install showers, lounges, duty-free shops and bars on both bridges.
With the press badociation and AFP
Source link
