Emirates believes Airbus can bow to demands on A380 programme

DUBAI, Nov 14, (RTRS): Emirates believes Airbus can meet demands from the Dubai government to guarantee development of the A380 jet programme, as it challenges the planemaker to see who will blink first in talks over a new $16 billion superjumbo plane order.

“I am sure that if we get closer to a further order, the Airbus board will make that undertaking,” Emirates President Tim Clark told reporters on Tuesday at the Dubai Airshow.

An anticipated order for A380 superjumbos worth $16 billion failed to materialise at the last moment on Sunday, forcing state-owned Emirates and Airbus into further talks.

Clark declined to speculate when a deal might be reached, but hinted on Monday it could be a matter of weeks or months. Airbus CEO Tom Enders left the air show on Monday, though sales chief John Leahy stayed locked in Dubai meetings.

Delegates said the chances of a deal during the Nov 12-16 event had faded after the two sides failed to agree in time for Sunday’s grand opening, but one did not exclude a last-minute patch-up that would bring Enders back for a signing. Airbus declined to comment. In the meantime, Clark stressed the Dubai government was serious about asking for guarantees that Airbus should keep the A380 in production for at least 10 years before Emirates placed a new order for the plane. The conditions were first set out in an interview with Reuters on Monday.

“The ownership of the business, the government of Dubai, the shareholder, needs absolute, absolute certainty,” he said.

Asked why this had become so important, he said, “because there has been a lot of talk” about the future of the A380, the world’s biggest passenger jet.