The first delivery of the new A320neo passenger jet from European aircraft maker Airbus had been set to go to launch customer Qatar Airways by the end of this month. On Monday Airbus said that Deutsche Lufthansa would replace Qatar Airways as the launch customer for the new plane.
In a statement cited at MarketWatch, Airbus said it had reached a “mutual understanding” that Lufthansa would be the first customer for the A320neo, a re-engined version of the company’s best-selling narrow-body A320 that is touted to provide a 15% improvement in fuel efficiency.
Airbus had promised that first delivery of the A320neo would occur by the end of 2015, but Qatar Airways was holding back on accepting delivery of the new plane as a result of some start-up issues with the Pratt & Whitney PW1100G-JM engines. Pratt & Whitney is a division of United Technologies Corp. (NYSE: UTX). The European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) and the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) last month certified the P&W engine, clearing the way for the A320neo to meet the first delivery by the end of this year.
24/7 Wall St.Thank you for reading! Have some feedback for us?
Contact the 24/7 Wall St. editorial team.
Editors' Picks
