26 June 2009

Qantas delivers fresh blow to Boeing

SYDNEY Ã¢â¬' A bad month just got a whole lot worse for Boeing after Qantas cancelled orders for 15 Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner aircraft.

The Australian carrier has also delayed delivery of the first batch of 15 787 aircraft by four years.

Earlier this month at the Paris Airshow, rival Airbus was the clear winner over Boeing with new orders.

Then Boeing announced further delays to the first flight of the Dreamliner after engineers uncovered structural problems,

Qantas's low-cost subsidiary, Jetstar, was due to receive the group's first 787s next year.

Boeing, in a statement, said discussions between Qantas and Boeing commenced some months ago and were not influenced by the announcement this week to postpone the 787 first flight.

Boeing added, Ã¢â¬ÅâœEven with the reduction, the Qantas Group jointly remains the biggest airline customer for 787 family aircraft. (Qantas Group and ANA each have ordered 50 787s.)Ã¢â¬~.

Qantas said the decision to abort orders for 15 787s would reduce the airline's capital expenditure by $US3 billion based on current list prices for the aircraft.

The first 15 787-9s due for Jetstar's international operations will now be delivered Ã¢â¬~¨from mid-2013, three years later than planned.