Posted on: Saturday, June 11, 2005
Air Show reflects rival visions
By Laurence Frost
Associated Press
LE BOURGET, France — Aircraft of all descriptions are arriving for the Paris Air Show, but the global aerospace industry's biggest gathering looks certain to be dominated more than ever by its biggest rivalry: the Boeing-Airbus dogfight.
Planes and helicopters have been flying in since early this week to take their places on the tarmac at Le Bourget, north of Paris, where they will go on display Monday alongside aeronautic and military hardware ranging from flight simulators to missiles.
Among them, the Airbus A380 "superjumbo" is bound to get the most attention at its first air show appearance — even as the European aircraft maker struggles to maintain the lead it took from its U.S. rival two years ago.
The 555-seater A380, scheduled to arrive tomorrow, represents Airbus' bet on a strong market for very large planes, while Boeing Co. sees more demand for long-range, mid-size jets like its fuel-efficient 787, which enters service in 2008.
After a slow start, Boeing's "Dreamliner" has drawn a surge of orders and commitments, to a total of 266. But the Airbus A350 — the European company's answer to the 787 — is having trouble getting off the ground, with just 10 nonbinding orders to date, and a trans-Atlantic trade dispute threatening its planned financing.
Airbus' top plane salesman John Leahy had vowed to close some of the 787's lead, saying more than 100 A350 orders would be clinched in time to be announced at Le Bourget.
But the Dubai-based airline Emirates, which analysts expected to account for about 50 of those orders, said yesterday it will not announce any purchases during the show.
"No decisions have yet been made and we do not have any new orders to announce in Paris," Emirates said, adding that it is still considering options including Boeing's 787 and 777.
Leahy's task cannot have been made any easier by the apparent setback to the A350 announced Wednesday, when parent company European Aeronautic Defence and Space Co. said the program was on track for a final go-ahead "by the end of September" — instead of next week, as many had expected.
Airbus spokesman David Velupillai declined to say yesterday whether the earlier target stands. Its parent company, which is embroiled in a Franco-German boardroom dispute over management changes, said Wednesday it was keen to avoid straining resources for other aircraft programs.
Airbus recently admitted that the first A380s will be delivered up to six months late, and several of its 15 early customers said they will seek compensation under the terms of their contracts.
Plans to use cheap loans from European governments to pay for one-third of the A350 $4.9 billion development cost are also at the center of a bitter trans-Atlantic trade dispute over plane subsidies, after Washington filed a complaint against the EU at the World Trade Organization last month and Brussels reciprocated.
The newest addition to Boeing's airliner family, the 777-240LR, will be part of the static displays, featuring 1,916 exhibitors from 41 countries.
