SYDNEY / DUBAI (Reuters) – Qatar Airways reached an agreement with Airbus SE (AIR.PA) to delay delivery of aircraft due to the pandemic-induced slowdown, but is still in talks with Boeing Co (BA).N) about postponements, the airline’s lead executive said Wednesday.
“We have the ability to advance deliveries on the occasion of an uptick in air transport,” Qatar Airways CEO Akbar al-Baker said of the Airbus agreement at the CAPA Australia Pacific Aviation Summit, offering additional details.
Al-Baker said the airline had reached an agreement with Boeing.
“As far as Boeing is concerned, we are still in negotiations with them, however, regardless of what they think, an aircraft manufacturer will have to force its consumers to go through difficult times,” he said.”People who will not force us and will remain with us in these difficult times we will never see each other again.”
Qatar Airways said in June that it would not settle for any new aircraft ordered from Boeing or Airbus in 2020 or 2021, adding that there would be a domino effect on long-term deliveries due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The airline ordered 27 A350-1000s and 50 A321nees, according to Airbus’Array, and also ordered 60 777X aircraft, five 777 cargo ships and 23,787-9 Boeing aircraft, the US manufacturer said.
Qatar Airways had also ordered 737 MAX aircraft for its partial airline Air Italy before its collapse and is in talks with Boeing about those aircraft, al-Baker said.
Airbus and Boeing did not respond to requests for comment.
Reporting by Jamie Freed in Sydney and Alexander Cornwell in Dubai, edited through Louise Heavens and Mark Potter
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