Boeing step up the war of words on Airbus ....

Boeing are quite naturally miffed that the Europeans had the only supersonic passenger plane and now sell the worlds largest passenger plane (pic of A 380 Flight deck). So their PR offensive has slipped into top gear ....

Emirates A340-600 delayed deliveries

Emirates of Dubai has reportedly told Airbus it was postponing indefinitely the date on which it was due to take delivery of the 20 x A340-600 jets on order due to tart 2007 due it is said to concern over fuel costs. (AFP reports confirmed by Reuters )

Emirates reportedly wants an improved version more fuel efficient version of the aircraft. International airlines collective fuel bill increased by 50 % last year to US 92 Bn. according to the International Air Transport Association (IATA) in Geneva.

Boeing claims the new 777-200LR twin-jet is the world’s longest-range aircraft and can transport more than 300 passengers for 24 per cent less fuel per passenger than the rival A340.

Airbus claims the 4 engined A340 frees operators to fly any route in the world, including the shortest and most effective paths across oceans and deserts. Twin-engined planes such as the Boeing 777 have to operate within a certain range of an emergency airport in case one of the engines fails. Insisting that engines are now thoroughly reliable, Boeing has argued for flight restrictions to be lifted, eroding the A340’s advantage.

Launched 15 yrs ago the A340 family , rivals to the 30 year old Boeing 747 has become a problem. 15 A340s were ordered last year, out of a record 1,055 firm orders for all types of passenger jet. Airlines ordered 154 Boeing 777s last year.

"One year does not make a trend," said Airbus president Gustav Humbert. The company’s commercial director, John Leahy, said a 4 engined plane burns only 6/7 % more fuel than a twinjet of equivalent size. Airbus are considering an enhanced A340 with lower fuel consumption, but the market is very much determined by purchase / leasing costs.

"With the 777, Boeing has a better product that uses less fuel," the head of India’s low-coast Kingfisher airline, Vijay Mallya, told AFP in February. "Nevertheless, we are contemplating buying the A340 all the same, if we can come to an agreement on the price."

Akbar al Baker President of Qatar Airways had announced an intention to buy 20 Boeing 777's but at the Singapore air show in February said he might change to Airbus 340-500/600s instead.

Boeing "Strategists" tell Airbus how to run their business

Boeing "strategists" claim Airbus cannot renew the A340 range at the same time as bringing its A380 superjumbo to market and developing a new twin-jet A350 to compete with the Boeing 777-200ER and the 787 Dreamliner.

Randy Baseler, said at Singapore that Airbus risked being overtaken in the next decade in the battle to develop and sell a new generation of medium-range aircraft to replace the current Boeing B737s and Airbus 320s.

No delays on A380 deliveries

Meanwhile Le Figaro report delays on the A380 firmly denied by Airbus. So far only the A380 with Rolls Royce Trent 900 engines has flown however the precise date for tests of the A380 powered by the Engine Alliance GP 7200 engines developed jointly by GE Aircraft Engines and Pratt & Whitney are still not available. Emirates confirm that deliveries were expected 2Q / 2007.

BAe sale of Airbus stake ?

Bloomberg report Charlotte Lambkin, head of communications at London-based BAE System saying " ``We have no immediate plans to sell our Airbus stakeholding,'' in a telephone interview. ``It's exactly as we always say: assets and shareholdings are under constant review to deliver value to shareholders.'' This was after a Sunday Telegraph reported yesterday that BAE may sell the holding Airbus, the world's biggest maker of commercial aircraft, for more than £3 Bn. (US$5.2 billion).... which would make BAe a delightful soulmate for Boeing in making planes that kill people rather than carry them on holiday.

BAe has a put option to sell the Airbus holding to European Aeronautic, Defence & Space Co., owner of the other 80 percent. EADS assigned a value to BAe's stake of 3.5 billion euros ($4.2 billion)

EADS Chief Financial Officer Hans Peter Ring said at the time that the 3.5 billion-euro figure wasn't necessarily the price EADS would pay, as the 2 parties would need to agree on the final terms.

US Leasing firms criticise A330 v Dreamliner

Last week US-based aircraft leasing firm ILFC Chief Executive Steven Udvar-Hazy, andr lessor, GE Commercial Aviation Services publicly warned last week that Airbus ran the risk of getting badly beaten by US rival Boeing's 787 Dreamliner. (Reuters)

Colin Stuart of Airbus said there were no plans to change the A350, based on the design of the older A330, but incorporating a composite wing and using the more fuel efficient engines being developed for the 787.

Boeing has so far won 343 firm orders for the 787, Airbus has 91 for the A350, launched a year later.

If anybody out there at Boeing (or anyone else) wants to learn how to put the worlds largest airlinere the A380 together in 7 minutes take a look at this video here Awesome !!