On January 22, Airbus canceled an order from Qatar Airways for 50 A321neo aircraft. Worth over 6 billion dollars if you look at the list price.
So, why did Airbus cancel the order? Usually, airlines cancel orders, not the other way around. Let’s Talk Aviation!
Up to last year, Airbus and Qatar seemingly had quite a good relationship. The airline flew with both the short-haul A320 as the long-haul A330, A350, and A380 – almost the entire Airbus catalog.
Paint issues
However, this changed in the summer of 2021 as the paint was peeling off some of their A350s. First, the airline announced that it wouldn’t take any new planes until the issue was resolved. And as of today, 21 of the 53 A350s in their fleet are grounded.
Remark that the groundings are on the initiative of the Qatari airline and as of now, no aviation regulators or Airbus itself have said that it is necessary to do so. Nonetheless, the airline believes that the fuselages of the affected planes are degrading at an accelerated rate and that the paint – or lack thereof – is a safety concern.
Let’s take a deeper look at the issue. Because of the paint coming loose, the anti-lightning mesh on the planes is now exposed. Aircraft paint is not only to make the plane look nice but also functions as a protection against the elements, water and UV radiation in particular.
You may wonder why you’ve never heard of this kind of issue before, and you are entirely right. Up until the A350 and 787 Dreamliner, aircraft were made with a metal hull on which it is apparently easier to paint compared to the composite material used for the A350 and 787. Also, because these composite materials are not good at conducting electricity, an extra copper mesh is added around the aircraft to function as a Faraday cage to prevent damage from lightning and right this layer is now exposed.
Until very recently, only Airbus aircraft appeared to have paint issues. This changed right before New Year when Air New Zealand announced that their 787s have similar issues.
Lawsuit
Coming back at Qatar Airways. After they first reported the issue, Airbus announced that it will investigate the issue and is working on a solution. However, Qatar Airways is apparently not happy with the way Airbus handles the issue. At the end of 2021, they sued Airbus and look for compensation for the costs inflicted by the grounding of their aircraft.
While it is not the first time an airline sues for compensation, these cases are usually handled out of court.
The airline is looking for over $600 million with an additional $4 million for each day their 21 A350s remain grounded. The Airbus – Qatar Airways relationship is getting worse by the day. Airbus is especially unpleased with the way the Qatari airline is damaging the reputation of the aircraft manufacturer.
Airbus response
In response, Airbus canceled an order Qatar had for 50 A321neos to replace their current 32 A320 and A321 aircraft starting in the spring of 2023. With an average age of about ten years, their current planes should be able to handle a couple more years. Still, Qatar is forced to look for another replacement if their issues with Airbus aren’t resolved any time soon.
They might shop at Boeing or Embraer, but both present the airline with the task of retraining their entire short-haul crew for the new aircraft types.