A recent dispute over paint on the recently delivered A350s escalated into an Airbus-Qatar Airways legal battle over a $6 billion contract for 50 of its new A321neo jets.
As a result of Airbus’s decision announced on Friday, Qatar Airways expressed “considerable regret and frustration.”
As a result of alleged problems with the Airbus A350 aircraft, Qatar Airways took Airbus to court in London in December.
The airline complained that the paint on the recently delivered Airbus A350s was peeling and cracking, exposing copper mesh that serves as an insulation for the aircraft against lightning, according to reports from Al-Jazeera.
The airline is demanding more than $600m in compensation after it grounded 21 of its 53 A350 jets due to the paint issue, claiming it poses a safety hazard.
The deal was valued at $6.35 billion when it was finalized in December 2017.
Qatar Airways posted a video of a scarred exterior of a grounded A350 jet on social media on Friday, which the airline said underlined “serious and legitimate safety concerns.”
“These defects are not superficial and one of the defects causes the aircraft’s lightning protection system to be exposed and damaged,” Qatar Airways said.
“We continue to urge Airbus to undertake a satisfactory root cause analysis into the cause of the defects.”
According to Airbus, it is considering redesigning the lightning-protecting mesh for future A350s but insists that the backup lightning protection is sufficient. It asserts Qatar is undermining global standards by seeking leverage over safety.
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