Airbus slows A380 output

photo by NguyenDai

Airbus unsurprisingly announced that it would lower the amount of A380 aircraft it produced this year to 14, down from 18. Originally, the company had planned to increase production this year compared with last (and still is expected to deliver 20 next year), but the weakened economy and recent scare over swine flu has had an impact on travel demand, causing airlines to defer/delay some aircraft deliveries. IATA has estimated that air traffic, which started declining back in September, fell by 11% in March. (The figures for April will be released soon.)

It's only the latest bump in the A380 program, which has not only seen cost overruns (development spending is now at $18 billion, up from the originally planned figure of $12 billion) but also substantial delays. Singapore Airlines, Qantas and Air France are expected to be among the airlines that take delivery of A380s this year. And Airbus is also scaling back production of other models, too - a move that competitors Boeing and Embraer have also followed.

Paris Air Show: Day 4

Surprise, surprise - Airbus has announced several orders so far today while Boeing has announced none. But keep in mind - Boeing has been steadily receiving orders throughout the year, while Airbus tends to save them up for the air show. And even though Airbus handily outsold Boeing at last year's show, Boeing ended up getting more orders for the year.

That said, here are today's orders:

Columbian flag carrier Avianca has ordered 19 more Airbus planes, 14 of which are in the A320 family, and five A330-200s. (It had options on the A330s, but this converts them to firm orders).

Hong Kong Airlines signed a Memorandum of Understanding for 51 Airbus planes, an order made up of 30 A320 family planes, 20 A330s and an Airbus Corporate Jet (basically, a plush version of the A319). BAA Jet Management also bought an Airbus Corporate Jet, to be based in Hong Kong.

Indonesian carrier Mandala Airlines purchased 25 A320s, which will be used to replace the aging Boeing 737-200s that it currently operates. Mandala will be the first Indonesian airline to operate the A320.

Singapore budget airline Tiger Airways signed a MoU for 30 more A320s and 20 options. This will certainly expand the airline's fleet by quite a bit, as it currently operates only nine A320s.

Embraer has also been receiving a few orders, too:

Brazilian carrier BRA Transportes Aéreos signed an order for 20 EMB 195 planes, with options for 20 more. The deal is valued at $730 million at list prices, and the planes will be delivered starting in 2008.

The EMB 190 got its first order from a Mexican airline when Aeroméxico announced that it would operate four of them under a contract with GECAS. (This order was previously booked.)

Italian airline Alpi Eagles confirmed five options for the EMB 195. The options were placed in March, when it ordered five planes. The value of the confirmed options is $182.5 million at list prices. Deliveries are scheduled to begin in April 2008.

Lufthansa, JAL go for Embraer

I'm creating a new post here because the other one was getting a bit long. Not to be outdone by Boeing and Airbus, Brazilian airplane manufacturer Embraer has also announced new aircraft orders at the Paris Air Show:

Lufthansa has ordered 30 Embraer 190 airplanes, with the option to order other planes in the 'E-Jet' family. The order is valued at over $1 billion (at list prices, of course). The first aircraft is scheduled for delivery in January 2009.

JAL has ordered 10 Embraer 170 airplanes, with options for five more. The first delivery is scheduled for 2008; notably, the planes will have a single-class interior and fly for J-AIR, a wholly-owned subsidiary of JAL, which flies regional routes throughout Japan.

Virgin eyes premium market

Speaking on the day of his airline's inaugural flight between London-Heathrow and Nairobi, Kenya, Virgin Atlantic chief Sir Richard Branson recently announced the launch of a business-only airline that would connect London and various European destinations with the US. Branson said that the airline "would provide choice and quality for the customer" and would hopefully be up and running in nine to 18 months.
The airline wouldn't be a fully separate entity; it would probably be an airline within an airline (Branson did say that the airline would be under the Virgin Atlantic name). The London airport was not yet mentioned - Heathrow, Gatwick, Luton, or Stanstead are all possibilities. Like arch-rival British Airways' newly announced service, Virgin's will connect London, Paris, Milan, Frankfurt and Zurich with the US (probably New York). "We've got to compete in this area," said Branson. "The service will be of the highest quality and will be competitive in terms of price." Virgin will also have to go up against airlines like Silverjet, Maxjet, Eos, and L'avion, all of which offer premium trans-Atlantic service.

Virgin is also reportedly in talks with aircraft manufacturers Boeing, Airbus, Bombardier and Embraer over a new aircraft order for up to 15 airplanes.