EVERETT — There was a lot of talk Thursday about big orders for Airbus and the Boeing Co. but no significant deals materialized.
Both Airbus and Boeing are in the running for an order from Virgin Atlantic Airways for their large jets, while Air China ruled out negotiations for an A380. An Airbus official declined comment on a widely reported order from International Lease and Finance Corp. for the company’s A350.
Virgin Atlantic says it could order as many as 10 widebody aircraft — either Boeing’s 747-8 or Airbus’s A380, reported Bloomberg News. The airline wants to have large aircraft in place for use during the 2012 Olympic Games in London.
Just last month, Virgin Atlantic competitor British Airways ordered 12 A380s and 24 Boeing 787s. Virgin Atlantic has 15 787 Dreamliners on order as well as six A380s.
One airline that isn’t considering an A380 order anytime soon is Air China. Earlier this week, Airbus officials said the two were in talks over the superjumbo jet. However, Air China’s chairman Li Jixiang said it makes more sense for the airline to stick with its Boeing 747s.
“Usually it would be better for a carrier to stick to one type of big aircraft in its fleet and better to form a certain scale,” Li said, speaking to reporters. “Otherwise the costs would rise.”
The Air China chairman also said that Boeing’s recent delay of its 787 Dreamliner will only affect one of the 15 jets that the carrier has on order. Air China is seeking compensation for the delay, he added.
Also on Thursday, Airbus’ North America Chairman Allan McArtor didn’t gloat about an order for 20 A350 jets from International Lease and Finance Corp. Instead, McArtor declined to confirm the deal, which was reported by several media outlets. He did say ILFC is “very comfortable” with the design of the A350, and that Airbus would welcome any contract between the two firms.
“I would be thrilled if we could get something cooking with ILFC,” McArtor said.
ILFC has placed orders for 74 of Boeing’s 787 Dreamliners.
McArtor had plenty to say about an ongoing trade dispute between Boeing and Airbus. Although McArtor views the dispute before the World Trade Organization as “bad for the industry” he doubts it will be resolved until after the U.S. Air Force awards a $40 billion contract to supply the agency with aerial refueling tankers.
McArtor described the dispute between his firm, which is a unit of European Aeronautic Defence &Space Co. and Boeing as a “waste of time and resources.”
“Government support to this industry on both sides of the Atlantic is part of the DNA,” McArtor said. “You ask the question, ‘Why are we still doing this?’ “
McArtor said he would prefer the two companies, along with U.S. and European trade officials, negotiate a settlement of the WTO complaints. But, he said, “there’s no sense” in taking that step until the decision on the tanker program is made.
The U.S. Air Force is set to replace its fleet of air refueling tankers, setting off a fierce competition between Boeing and a partnership of Airbus and Northrop Grumman Corp. The contract is expected to be awarded by the end of the year. Boeing has proposed a version of its Everett-built 767.
McArtor said that decision could clear the way for trade officials to settle the two WTO complaints between the U.S. and European Union over government subsidies to the firms, describing the WTO process as “not as precise as you might think.”
Boeing’s stock finished up Thursday $1.35 at $96.94.
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