Qatar Airways announced on Monday that it had issued legal proceedings in a UK court against Airbus.
The Gulf carrier issued the legal proceedings in the Technology and Construction division of the High Court in London in a move to solve its dispute with the manufacturer over surface degradation flaws on A350 passenger jets.
Qatar Airways reportedly took this action after it could not reach an appropriate solution over the degradation of surface and paint on some of its Airbus A350 aircraft. In a statement, Qatar Airways said:
“We have sadly failed in all our attempts to reach a constructive solution with Airbus in relation to the accelerated surface degradation condition adversely impacting the Airbus A350 aircraft. Qatar Airways has therefore been left with no alternative but to seek a rapid resolution of this dispute via the courts.”
Later that day, Airbus confirmed that it had received a formal legal claim from a UK court, saying, “Airbus is in the process of analyzing the contents of the claim. Airbus intends to vigorously defend its position.”
Qatar’s Civil Aviation Authority has grounded a total of 21 Airbus A350s due to this condition. Initially, the regulator has grounded 13 A350s due to these problems. However, Airbus insists that its jets are safe to fly despite the issue.
“We strongly believe that Airbus must undertake a thorough investigation of this condition to conclusively establish its full root cause. Without a proper understanding of the root cause of the condition, it is not possible for Qatar Airways to establish whether any proposed repair solution will rectify the underlying condition,” said Qatar Airways.
Feature Image: “Reuters”