October 26, 2006

MAKING TODAY THE FOURTH OF NEVER?:


Virgin Atlantic to delay A380 deliveries until 2013 (Steve Goldstein, Oct 26, 2006, MarketWatch)

Virgin Atlantic on Thursday said it's agreed to push back deliveries of the troubled Airbus A380 superjumbo until 2013, a move it said would give Airbus the ability to focus on getting first versions of the planes to key customers.

The privately held airline said by then, the A380 will have proved its "innovative design" over several years in customer service. Virgin had previously anticipating delivery of its first A380 in 2009.

The deferral will allow Airbus to prioritize production and deliveries for launch customers such as Singapore Airlines, Virgin said, adding it's extended the leases of several Boeing 747-800 aircraft to meet its fleet needs.

Posted by Orrin Judd at October 26, 2006 3:09 PM
Comments

Was that a domino I heard?

Posted by: ras at October 26, 2006 4:06 PM

Hee-hee !! The airbus death spiral begins. Any wagers on the next "deferral" ???

Posted by: dan in dallas at October 26, 2006 5:53 PM

Perhaps the Air Force should buy A380s to replace the KC-10 tankers. At least John McCain might not object.

Posted by: ratbert at October 26, 2006 9:12 PM

Actually, an A380 might make a superb tanker. Think of the fuel capacity.

Posted by: Mike Morley at October 26, 2006 9:55 PM
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