http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2006-07/17/content_4843846.htm
Airbus is expected to announce a costly redesign of its midsize A350 at
Britain's Farnborough Air Show near London on Monday to compete with
Boeing's 787.
Tom Enders, the joint CEO of Airbus parent European Aeronautic Defence
and Space Co. (EADS), confirmed over the weekend that the company will
disclose details of the revamp at Farnborough, increasing its development
cost to about 10 billion U.S. dollars (8 billion euros) from the previously
estimated 5.7 billion dollars, The New York Times reported.
Photo shows Airbus A380, the world's biggest passenger aircraft, during a
test in London's Heathrow Airport on May 19, 2006. (Xinhua Photo)
The announcement on the A350 redesign is meant to counter the impression
that Airbus is hopelessly adrift amid declining orders, turmoil in its
executive suite and manufacturing chaos that led to a further six-month
delay in the delivery of its flagship superjumbo jet, the A380.
The delay, announced last month, sent EADS shares plunging and led to
the departure of Airbus Chief Executive Gustav Humbert and EADS co-CEO Noel
Forgeard.
Airbus reported last week that its sales fell by more than half in the
first six months of the year to 117 planes, compared to Boeing's 480 orders
for the same period.
The 555-seat A380 will be taking part in the daily flying displays at
Farnborough, where 300,000 visitors are expected.
On Monday, a redesigned version of the A350 will be presented at
Farnborough. Executives refused to say much about the 250-to-350-seat plane,
except for one who said it would be "bigger, lighter, cheaper, faster" than
the existing design, which had been shaping up as an also-ran next to
Boeing's more advanced 787. The development costs, however, will be twice
that of the original A350.
"It's going to be very powerful, and it's going to reassert our position
in the marketplace," said Tom Williams, an executive vice president at
Airbus. "We're not going to give up on this market."
Meanwhile, Alan Mulally, Boeing Co.'s head of commercial planes, said
Sunday some areas of its fast-selling 787 Dreamliner are behind schedule,
but that should not push back the new lightweight midsize plane's entry into
service scheduled for 2008.
"We're a little over where we want to be at this time on weight, but
ahead of where we were on previous programs, so we're really focused on
weight-efficient structure right now," Mulally said.
"Some partners are a little behind on the schedule but we're working
with them on recovery plans to catch up," he said. Enditem
Gregory S. Williams
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