Qatar Airways’ A321neo Order Canceled By Airbus Amid A350 Dispute

In the ongoing dispute over A350 surface degradation issues, Airbus has announced that it has canceled Qatar Airways’ order for 50 A321neos. What started as reports of abnormal paint issues in January of 2021 has escalated significantly over the past 12 months, with a legal showdown looming.

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[needles_balloon]

Given that the A320 line is fully booked for the next 6 years and several airlines have chosen Boeing for availability reasons, I'm sure Airbus will be able to sell those 50 aircraft very easily.

[nassimkettouche]

There is no match for a321lr from the Max lineup. 321lr has 4000nm range with 200pax. The Max 10, with 200pax its range is 3300m. Airbus know they are hurting QR as no match out there for their plane.

[ghostrider-beek]

Finnair is also having some paint issues with their early A350s, but they arent being children about it.

[frankpinmtl]

"Qatar is expected to fight the cancellation"
- good luck with that.
Sometimes there are some customers that aren't worth the hassle...

[Luke_Go]

Interesting. Boeing walks away from a potential Ryanair order. Airbus gives Qatar the boot. Maybe some CEOs start to learn that they cannot get whatever they want...

[fb]

The paint is just a cosmetic issue and Airbus offered all the customers with that paint batch to repaint free of charge. Qatar is taking advantage of this defect and trying to play a game of strength to gain some money in lawsuit.
Airbus has done a brilliant move to annoy the airliner and show who's the strongest. There are no other aircrafts that match the A321LR and even if Qatar replaces the order later on they will end up at the end of the que (6+ years long). Either way Qatar's operation planning for the next 10 years is screwed.

[adarshmishra]

Huge blow for qatar airways 😏😏
(Personally being fan of a380, which QA criticized recently alot,
they deserved this treatment 🤣😬)

[MarcvanExel]

Airbus is standing it's ground and considering the childish way Qatar usually blames aircraft makers I kind of like this move. But that only works if Airbus is correct.

[DoolittleSailing]

Honestly I think it’s great. Qatar Airways and Qatar are behaving like bullies. They are trying to financially benefit from the legal fight that they have started, destroying trust in the process. How would partnership between two companies be possible without trust? Airbus is not dependent on Qatar and they are demonstrating that. Love it.

[oseibonsu]

The 737 Max is facing a lot. 747 is ending production, 777X is still yet to see the light of day. Delievery paused for the 787s because of issues. Let Qatar Airways go to Boeing who already have a lot to fix. Good move by Airbus.

[da]

Perfect move Airbus. Bravo. They will surely sell these planes at a higher price, and will hedge any risks stemming from Qatar greedy behaviour. Al Baker has been humbled.

[brot]

Airbus shows some strength and shows that it is not going to be shuffled around easily.

[ZRHTrainspotter]

Thats just sad. I was planning to fly on their A321neo. Now i wont fly Qatar again!

[WindowsR]

If Qutar didn’t see this coming, they are rather blind. There’s no way harassing your business partner, let alone a manufacturer that provides majority of your planes is going to end well. Airbus has lines of other customers to replace the 50 planes anyways.

[ricahrdb]

Very surprising move. This case is getting stranger and stranger. I often get the feeling that we are missing a lot of the facts about what is happening. Can't remember a case that is even remotely similar to this one.

[MarkWyche]

I read that another component to this dispute is that Qatar is seeking $4 million in daily compensation from Airbus over the A350 surface degradation issue.

Airbus believes that the A350 grounding is collusion between Qatar Airways and the Qatar Civil Aviation Authority.

I do agree with Airbus’ position that Qatar Airways is trying to damage the manufacturer’s reputation. Canceling the A321 contract definitely sends a strong message to Qatar. The airline needs that aircraft type.

Qatar has already brought negative attention to A380 and A350. Airbus is right to not allow them to do it with A321. They’re protecting their brand and reputation.

[rohitnandu]

Great decision Airbus...They know well that those in need of them will approach them.

[sho]

Qatar Airways did it way too much… I’m for Airbus at this time.

[IANinALTONA]

I think Gargamel 'AL Baker' has overstayed his welcome in the aviation industry. This man is becoming a liability and I will surely not fly Qatar again as long as he is at the helm. Good job Airbus. Drawing a line was important. STAND YOUR GROUND, AIRBUS!

[grriceman]

Good for you Airbus…standing your ground against Qatar 🇶🇦!! Let them either come to their senses or find another ✈️ supplier.