Emirates seeks 10-15 years of A380 production guarantee

Emirates airline, the world's largest operator of Airbus A380, insists that it must have a commitment from the European aircraft maker about the continuation of the super jumbo production for at least 10 years before it considers placing new orders for the aircraft.

The Dubai-based carrier, which last week took delivery of the 100th A380, and has 42 more double-decker aircraft on order, is the world's largest operator of wide-body aircraft fleet, which also comprises Boeing 777.

On Sunday, the European airframe maker suffered a major setback when it failed to win orders for its Airbus A350 aircraft from Emirates, which instead had opted for Boeing's 787-10 Dreamliners, at the opening day of Dubai Airshow.

However, undeterred by the unexpected fiasco, Airbus is pressing ahead with its campaign to sell more of its A380 superjumbos to Emirates, even promising trade-in deals and more advanced and efficient version of the aircraft called A380Plus.

Tim Clark, Emirates' president, said the carrier would probably stick with the Boeing 787 for its mid-sized fleet needs. Emirates ordered 40 Boeing 787-10 jets worth $15.1 billion at list prices on Sunday.

Clark said the Dubai-based carrier needs guarantees that if it would buy some more A380s, the programme should continue for a minimum period of years.

"Those assurances I am sure will come. Quite when, I don't quite know," he was quoted as saying. "If we order any more, we want to make absolutely sure that the will is there contractually to continue the line for 10 to 15 years," Clark said.

On whether Emirates would think of A350 in its expansion plan, Clark said: "No. I would say that once we have gone for the 787 we will stay with the 787, but I can never say never."

Aviation experts said Airbus may be willing to meet Dubai's conditions in order to secure a much-needed order for its flagship A380 product. It may be even willing to buy back some of the older A380s currently operated by Emirates as a trade-in deal to keep afloat the superjumbo programme, which after a decade in service has seen sales decline in favour of smaller but equally efficient long-haul jetliners.

The European aircraft maker has not yet completely given up hope for a deal for an expected 36-38 A380s aircraft in a possible trade-in deal.

According to people familiar with the Emirates-Airbus talks, the European company is negotiating a follow-on accord for about 36 A380s. The signing ceremony on Sunday was widely expected to be for that aircraft, until Boeing pulled out a surprise deal for 40 787-10 Dreamliners.

As part of a package of enhancements to the superjumbo aircraft, which it will collectively brand as the 'A380plus,' Airbus is to increase the maximum take-off weight of the A380. Increasing the take-off weight to 578 tonnes, a rise of three tonnes, will enable the current version of the aircraft to extend its range by 300nm.

The A380plus - which is still formally a development study - will also feature winglets, which will provide up to four per cent reduction in fuel-burn.

Airbus says the A380plus will include previously-disclosed measures to raise accommodation by 80 seats at the A380's current range of 8,200nm.

The manufacturer expects the enhanced aircraft to cut cost-per-seat by 13 per cent against its predecessor.

A380plus will have lower maintenance costs, and is a new step for the iconic aircraft to best serve worldwide fast-growing traffic and the evolving needs of the A380 customers, according to Airbus chief operating officer for customers John Leahy.

Airbus has previously shown off incremental upgrades to the A380, which will become part of the A380plus.

Source: Khaleej Times