Europe - economy

Airbus announces yet another delay to A380 delivery

Article published on the 2008-05-13 Latest update 2008-05-14 09:50 TU

Airbus A380
(Photo: AFP)

In yet one more delay that puts production 18 months behind schedule, European aviation giant Airbus admitted Tuesday that it would not be able to meet its delivery schedule of 45 A380 superjumbo jets by 2010. Airbus chief Thomas Enders said the company could deliver "between 30 and 40" giant jets-- short of the previous promise of 45.

This newest round of delays has cost airbus and parent company EADS an estimated 3.87 billion euros. The group is in the midst of a massive restructuring to cut 10,000 jobs.

But even this move has been plagued with problems as the disposal of some facilities did not go through as planned.

In an effort to remain positive, Airbus has announced that four planes have been delivered on time and are performing at regular capacity, while 17 are in various stages of production.

Insufficient "time and resources" to switch to a new production system has been the cause of the delays, according to a statement released by Airbus.

The A380 is a double-decker plane that can carry up to 853 people.