Airbus hijacks rival's patch

MELBOURNE - Airbus Industrie has won its first orders with Qantas Airways, including plans to buy 12 of the proposed A3XX "superjumbo."

Australia's largest airline said it would spend $US4.6 billion ($10.9 billion) on 31 new aircraft over the next 10 years.

The orders will make Qantas a launch customer if the A3XX goes into production, and marks a setback for Airbus' bigger rival, Boeing, which had promoted planned stretched versions of the 747 and 777 aircraft.

"This is Airbus' strongest endorsement since it won a $US8.6 billion order for as many as 25 A3XXs from Singapore Airlines," said aviation consultant Richard Aboulafia.



Airbus has made big in-roads in winning orders from some all-Boeing customers, including British Airways, which bought its first Airbus jets in 1998.

Qantas, 25 per cent-owned by British Airways, is also the only big Asia-Pacific carrier that has not bought Boeing 777s.

Airbus is just six orders short of the 50 it wants before proceeding with development of the A3XX.

With 555 seats, it will become the biggest commercial aircraft.

Qantas cited the jet's operational and economic advantages as reasons for its choice.

"Importantly, it will assist us to meet growth at slot-constrained airports on our key routes," said chief executive-designate Geoff Dixon.

Sydney-based Qantas also said it would buy seven Airbus A330-200s and six Airbus A330-300s.

But Qantas' order also included six longer-range Boeing 747-400 jets.

The US planemaker is offering the model as an interim while it tries to win orders for its proposed 747X, a more extensive "stretch" of the 30-year-old aircraft.

The interim model would be able to carry more fuel and have a range about 800km further than the present 747-400.

Qantas expects to receive the Boeings between 2002 and 2006, when the first A3XX jets would also arrive.

Boeing is yet to land any orders for the 747X.

Qantas said it would finance the purchases from cash, debt and equity, without giving further details.

The planned purchase was contained in a release to the Australian Stock Exchange.

Qantas is expanding its fleet, partly to head off domestic competition from discount carriers in the $A7 billion ($9.1 billion) Australian market, and as regional competitors such as Singapore Airlines and Cathay Pacific upgrade their fleets.