Airbus CEO Guillaume Faury said the company is in talks with Qatar Airways to try to resolve a bitter legal dispute over the safety of the A350 jet.
In a statement on the sidelines of the aviation sector meeting in Doha, he explained that “there is progress in the sense that we communicate and work with each other”, expressing his confidence that “we share the view that a settlement will be the best way forward”.
There is a dispute between the two sides over the airworthiness of Europe’s latest long-range aircraft after damage to their protective outer coating exposed gaps in the lightning protection system, prompting Qatari authorities to land more than 20 aircraft.
Airbus, with the support of European aviation authorities, acknowledges quality defects on a number of airlines’ aircraft, but denies that such problems amount to safety hazards, emphasizing that there is sufficient back-up protection against lightning strikes.
Source: El Iktisad
