Northwest will probably redesign it for 1500 seats in coach.
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NW Airbus translated into train travel.
Posted on 12/14/2004 5:51:53 AM PST by Nagilum
Airbus A380 blows £1bn hole in budget By Christopher Hope (Filed: 14/12/2004)
Airbus, the commercial jet maker which is 20pc owned by BAE Systems, yesterday admitted that the research and development costs for its new double-decker jumbo jet are up to €1.5billion (£1.04 billion) over budget.
Noel Forgeard, chief executive of the Toulouse-based company, admitted in an interview with a French newspaper that the A380 – the world's biggest passenger jet when it enters service in 2006 – will exceed its budgets by between €500m and €1.5 billion.
He told Le Monde: "The most important parameter is the production cost for each plane, and for that, we are in line. On the other hand, it's true that the research and development costs, estimated at $10.7billion (£5.58billion), will be surpassed."
Airbus confirmed Mr Forgeard's comments. However a spokesman added that the extra cost had been accounted for in previous years' figures, which meant that countries like Britain which have stumped up launch aid for the A380 will not be asked for more cash.
The Airbus spokesman also said that the A380 would post a 10pc profit margin in 2005.
Mr Forgeard's comments emerged on the same day as a research note from analysts at Goldman Sachs in London on EADS, the European aerospace business which owns 80pc of Airbus.
Goldman estimates that research and development at EADS will cost €1.8billion in 2004 – most of which will be spent on the A380's passenger jet and a freighter alternative. He said: "We are dismayed but relatively unsurprised by the revelation of the additional A380 costs."
The first test flight of the 555-seat jet, which is a third bigger than Boeing's market leading 747 jet, is due in early 2005. Goldman said that any delay to the first flight could "jeopardise deliveries, and hence drive additional costs for the programme".
This is where the beauty of government subsidies kicks in!
(sarcasm).
The US needs to old the line against the EU and Airbus.
Figures a critical piece of Airbus and they have to drag Boeing into it, when Airbus does good no mention however..
Northwest will probably redesign it for 1500 seats in coach.
Even at 555 seats, it should take half of your vacation for your luggage to come down the chute.
Meanwhile the EU accuses the US of subsidizing Boeing because they build military aircraft as well as airliners.
EU is just trying to distort the argument. They know they are guilty as hell. BUT, they also know they make an inferior product, and that the only reason Airbus sells as well as it does is because they discount their A/C HEAVILY in the face of the better Boeing product line. And, finally, they know that they would not be able to offer those discounts if it weren't for the subsidies afforded to airbus by the taxpayers.
I am torn because I do think Boeing needs competition to produce better aircraft, but I definitely think it should be fair competition, and Airbus is playing with a dirty deck of cards.
Correction:
Airbus, the "commercial" jet maker which is 20pc owned by BAE Systems,
Support Boeing's competition - buy a 717 today!
Weirdest argument I've heard in years, but that's the euroeunuchs for you.
What I want to know is... will this thing have a plastic tail too?
You fly Northwest often ?
Kids used to call me Uncle Dad.
BTW - the folder that airlines used to use for holding your ticket and boarding pass - I wall papered my basement with them. Had some classics like Pan Am Flt 001 and 002.
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NW Airbus translated into train travel.
I think this is an issue of creative accounting. They bury more development expenses in order to avoid some sort of WTC subsidy issue.
you're probably right on that one - or they may just be trying to put more development cost in to A380 to try and dump it into "general research" that will facilitate the A350's design.
I don't think BAE refers to Boeing but rather British Aerospace. Boeing's stock ticker is BA.
well if you look at acronym searcher it's either BAE Boeing Aerospace Engineering
BAE Brigade Aviation Element
BAE British Aerospace
16 years in the Twin Cities and NWA controlled 85 percent of the gates. I don't know how many $ thousands they overcharged me...
Do you think the dollar fall against the Euro will make Boeing's pricing competitive to the extent customers will be interested?
Actually I would like to know the marketing issues that makes a customer choose Airbus over Boeing. Plane price? Maintenance agreements? Parts pricing? Financing?
I know here in Seattle in the past it was Union incompetence with meeting production schedules that did Boeing in.
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