It's the escalation between Airbus and Qatar Airways.
While the European aircraft manufacturer canceled an order for fifty A321neos from Qatar Airways on Friday, the airline responded by publishing a video pointing out the poor workmanship of Airbus planes.
A video that was published on the Qatar Airways website and is available on Youtube.
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“
As this video clearly shows, these defects are not superficial and one of them damages the aircraft's lightning protection system. Another flaw leaves the underlying composite structure exposed to moisture and ultraviolet light, and other flaws include cracks and damage (...)
,” the Qatari company claims in its press release, in which it asks Airbus to carry out an investigation.
For Airbus, which recognizes a degradation of the paint which could expose an integrated metal net - intended to protect the plane in the event of a lightning strike on its fuselage made of composite materials -, this situation has no consequences on safety in flight. The European Aviation Safety Agency, EASA, confirmed that these degradations did not entail any airworthiness risks.
This paint chipping problem on the A350s is at the heart of the conflict between the company and the aircraft manufacturer.
The Qatari company indeed decided, last August, to ground several Airbus A350s and is suing the aircraft manufacturer for compensation.
If this defect has been found on certain aircraft from other companies, Qatar Airways is the only one to ban them from flying, causing a significant loss of earnings for this specialist in long-haul flights.
Read alsoLitigation over the A350: Qatar Airways takes Airbus to court in Britain
During a hearing Thursday before the High Court of Justice in London, each party presented its elements.
Qatar Airways has claimed compensation of 618 million dollars, along with a penalty of 4 million per additional day of immobilization of its A350s, according to a source familiar with the matter.
A new hearing is scheduled for the week of April 26.