Citrusflyer
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New orders bring jobs joy for Airbus Feb 24 2003
By Eryl Crump Daily Post Staff
HUNDREDS of North Wales aerospace jobs will be safeguarded if two major orders for new Airbus aircraft are agreed.
Speculation at the weekend centred on orders from a Middle East airline, believed to be Emirates, for at least 10 Airbus A380 super-jumbo aircraft and from American low-cost airline AirTran for up to 60 Airbus A320s.
Wings for both planes are manufactured Broughton ghton n in Flintshire. The factory employs more than 6,000 workers.
Airbus chairman Noel Foregard said last week that additional orders were expected for the A380 "in the first half of the year".
An announcement could be timed for the Paris airshow in June.
Fast-growing Emirates has plans to expand its fleet of aircraft which currently includes the Airbus A330 and the Boeing 777.
An Emirates spokesman, confirming that it had options on 10 A380s in addition to the current order for 12 of the
massive declined to comment on the possible order.
Meanwhile Airbus's chief commercial officer, John Leahy, said Orlando-based AirTran would order between 50 and 60 of the single-aisle A320.
The which can seat up to 160 passengers, has already been ordered by low-cost airlines JetBlue and easyJet.
AirTran, which operates a large fleet of 112-seat Boeing 717 had been expected to order a large number of Boeing 737s. Analysts said both
deals are significant because they involve two of the most likely areas for growth in air travel during the next 10-15 years.
Michael Dixon, of Innavia, said last night: "Large capacity aircraft such as the A380, which can carry 555 passengers in a three class layout, will become increasingly popular as the demand for air travel grows. A similar surge was seen in the early 1970s when the Boeing 747 was first introduced and significant growth was seen then.
"Emirates have succeeded in connecting traffic on East-West flows. They are adding frequencies on key routes between Europe and the Far East. By the time the A380 comes into service, these services will be in need of a capacity boost.
"The low-cost sector continues to show significant growth and AirTran have succeeded in a very difficult sector of the market.
"From their main hub at Atlanta, they fly an intensive network of services to cities in the north-east, southeast and mid-western parts of the USA. The introduction of A320s will allow the airline to grow capacity and also expand to cities which are currently beyond the range of its current fleet of Boeing 717 and DC-9 aircraft."
Competition between Airbus and Boeing has been intense for several years.
Dixon expects Airbus to end the year with more orders and deliveries than its American rival.
"Airbus has made an excellent start to the year announcing a number of deals across its range of products. Boeing, on the other hand, have only announced one major deal so far, when Ryanair announced they were converting options on Boeing 737s," he said.
By Eryl Crump Daily Post Staff
HUNDREDS of North Wales aerospace jobs will be safeguarded if two major orders for new Airbus aircraft are agreed.
Speculation at the weekend centred on orders from a Middle East airline, believed to be Emirates, for at least 10 Airbus A380 super-jumbo aircraft and from American low-cost airline AirTran for up to 60 Airbus A320s.
Wings for both planes are manufactured Broughton ghton n in Flintshire. The factory employs more than 6,000 workers.
Airbus chairman Noel Foregard said last week that additional orders were expected for the A380 "in the first half of the year".
An announcement could be timed for the Paris airshow in June.
Fast-growing Emirates has plans to expand its fleet of aircraft which currently includes the Airbus A330 and the Boeing 777.
An Emirates spokesman, confirming that it had options on 10 A380s in addition to the current order for 12 of the
massive declined to comment on the possible order.
Meanwhile Airbus's chief commercial officer, John Leahy, said Orlando-based AirTran would order between 50 and 60 of the single-aisle A320.
The which can seat up to 160 passengers, has already been ordered by low-cost airlines JetBlue and easyJet.
AirTran, which operates a large fleet of 112-seat Boeing 717 had been expected to order a large number of Boeing 737s. Analysts said both
deals are significant because they involve two of the most likely areas for growth in air travel during the next 10-15 years.
Michael Dixon, of Innavia, said last night: "Large capacity aircraft such as the A380, which can carry 555 passengers in a three class layout, will become increasingly popular as the demand for air travel grows. A similar surge was seen in the early 1970s when the Boeing 747 was first introduced and significant growth was seen then.
"Emirates have succeeded in connecting traffic on East-West flows. They are adding frequencies on key routes between Europe and the Far East. By the time the A380 comes into service, these services will be in need of a capacity boost.
"The low-cost sector continues to show significant growth and AirTran have succeeded in a very difficult sector of the market.
"From their main hub at Atlanta, they fly an intensive network of services to cities in the north-east, southeast and mid-western parts of the USA. The introduction of A320s will allow the airline to grow capacity and also expand to cities which are currently beyond the range of its current fleet of Boeing 717 and DC-9 aircraft."
Competition between Airbus and Boeing has been intense for several years.
Dixon expects Airbus to end the year with more orders and deliveries than its American rival.
"Airbus has made an excellent start to the year announcing a number of deals across its range of products. Boeing, on the other hand, have only announced one major deal so far, when Ryanair announced they were converting options on Boeing 737s," he said.
