European aerospace giant EADS confirmed Thursday that its A380 superjumbo program will suffer additional delivery delays, citing ongoing wiring complications during aircraft production. The announcement marks the third such setback since June of the previous year.
Press reports in both France and Britain suggested a further six-month delay to deliveries was imminent, with as few as four aircraft potentially handed over in 2007. The company had originally planned 25 deliveries, already slashed to nine earlier this year.
New Airbus chief executive Christian Streiff is reportedly drawing up a sweeping restructuring plan ahead of a board meeting on 29 September. The proposals could include annual cost reductions of around 2 billion euros and a partial shift of production outside the eurozone to ease currency pressures, though an EADS spokesman called such reports "speculation."
EADS said it had not yet determined a revised delivery schedule or calculated the financial damage, but promised an update within four weeks. Shares in EADS fell roughly 2.3 percent in Paris trading Thursday.
The A380, capable of carrying 840 passengers, has been ordered by 16 airlines worldwide, including Singapore Airlines, Emirates, Qantas, Air France, and Malaysia Airlines. Wiring problems are believed to center on in-flight entertainment systems.
Historical summary. TurkishPress restated this wire report, first published in September 2006, in its own words.