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Qatar Airways chief executive Akbar al-Baker said today that the Qatari national carrier has cancelled its first Airbus A320neo jet and remains at an impasse with the European planemaker over delays in deliveries.
The delays are having an impact on Qatar Airways’ bottom line, but the carrier said it is not seeking compensation, Al-Baker told reporters at the International Air Transport Association (IATA) annual meeting in Dublin.
The airline announced in May it was reducing the frequency of more than a dozen regular routes from Doha because of hold-ups in the delivery of new planes from Airbus.
“We are five aircraft down this summer,” Al-Baker told reporters. “This is why we are screaming because it is making a huge impact on my bottom line. We are still at an impasse. We have walked away from our first A320neo because more than a certain number of days late, so exercised a walk away clause.”
He said he still expects Airbus will be able to deliver 10 of the larger A350 planes as promised this year.
“We will have no alternative but to lease. We are awaiting final response from Airbus,” he said. “We are not talking about compensation. It is about us getting aeroplanes so we can meet network requirement.”