Obligatory picture of the Official Airbus Repair Kit
Posted on 11/14/2006 1:16:17 PM PST by Zakeet
IRBUS would decide before the end of the month on whether to go ahead with its A350 jetliner, with the launch dependent on the success of a restructure, chief executive Louis Gallois said today.
The A350, a long-haul mid-sized plane, has been drawn up by Airbus as a competitor for Boeing's popular 787 Dreamliner and 777 long-haul planes, but its development costs have been estimated at $US10 billion-$US12 billion ($13bn-$16bn).
Mr Gallois said the A350 program depended on implementation of a restructuring plan aimed at slashing production costs, cutting jobs and streamlining suppliers to the Toulouse-based group.
"We will not launch the A350 without Power 8,'' Mr Gallois said, referring to the name of a restructuring plan announced by Airbus at the beginning of October
"We cannot launch a new program if we are not sure of being in a competitive situation,'' he said.
Speaking at a round table attended by subcontractors of the group and French Prime Minister Dominique de Villepin, Mr Gallois said that a decision on the A350 would be made before the end of November.
The Power 8 restructuring plan is a reponse by Airbus to delays to its superjumbo A380 project, which is running two years behind schedule because of costly production problems.
(Excerpt) Read more at news.com.au ...
This is not a laughing matter.
If you want on or off my aerospace ping list, please contact me by Freep mail.
Oh, I see... It's Australian. I did not think that a European media outlet would use the term "troubled."
You forgot to include a rubber band or two and a paper clip.
I'm just an occasional flier but one of the most uncomfortable trips I ever took was on an Airbus plane.
TAP from Newark to Lisbon. It was just awful !
The best was on a Boeing 777--- BA-Boston to London.
I got their power 8.
It would make a hell of a lawn ornament.
I was flipping channels a week or two when I came across a show on the Airbus. It must have been a year or two old as it was all praise on how well things were working out with parts being built all over Europe.
Anyway, this was on the very first one to be completed, and they were showing one of the last parts to be put on the plane. It was somewhere on top near the tail. I have no idea what it was for, but it looked like a small intrument package. There was a cable connection that had to be made once it was to be inserted.
To the embarrassment of the engineer/technician/factory worker, the connection was about two inches too short.
They could not install that last piece. It was not clear how they resolved that issue, but I was thinking to myself, I sometimes have problem when I build things myself, but if my bookcase falls apart no big whoops.
I would think these things would be engineered to the point where everything fit, the first time.
We will not launch the A350 without Power 8
More please, s'more government subsidies, please...
Airbus plans to outsource an estimated $3.5 billion worth of work on its new mid-sized jet
that doesn't make sense because yugobus is not in the plane building bidness but in the job providing bidness for
the krauts and the frogs.
Power 8 will have soo much government interference, it will never be implemented successfully. The french are going to turn around and blackmail Germany, Spain, and UK into giving them the billions in launch subsides they will need to fund the A350 development.
They simply cannot do the A350 project. I would be completely surrending the widebody commercial airplane market to Boeing for 20+ years. Their pride would never allow it, even if the project ends up just like the A380 and never is profitable.
Hmmm, that didn't seem to slow their decision re. the A380.
.
I smell B.S.
They are only saying this so they won't get their butts tossed infront of the WTO. The Euro governments will never allow all these job cuts and Airbust will find back channel ways to get the billions in subsides they will need to fund the A350.
"AIRBUS would decide before the end of the month on whether to go ahead with its A350 jetliner, with the launch dependent on the success of a restructure, chief executive Louis Gallois said today."
This has to be a bunch of baloney. I really can't see how Airbus competes with Boeing in significant market segments without the A350.
Could Airbus really forgo the A350 and not be relegated to a tier below Boeing for a decade or more?
WTO! Speak of the devil...
"US to make its case in Airbus-Boeing WTO dispute on Wednesday"
http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20061113/bs_afp/euusaerospacetrade_061113190300
If Airbus needs to drop a product, it should be the albatross A-380. This is a plane with NO profit potential whatsoever, and keep the A-350, which at least has a possibility for viability in the future.
The pain would be immense, but the 350 at least has the potential to eventually make money - maybe.
if Boeing can increase the production rate on the 787 as they ramp up into volume production, I don't see how Airbus can effectively compete with the 350 either, but at least they will have a saleable product. Eventually.
LMAO!
When all else fails, copy the Americans!
Hey, I know - what if we got James Baker to head up the Power 8 effort?
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