UPS Re-examines A380 Freighter Order

[Two's in]

http://www.reuters.com/article/ousiv/idUSN2349796020070223

NEW YORK (Reuters) - United Parcel Service Inc. (UPS.N: Quote, Profile, Research), the last remaining customer for the Airbus A380 superjumbo freighter, said on Friday it reached an agreement for Airbus to push back delivery dates of the planes and left open its option to cancel the order outright.

UPS, the world's largest package delivery company, has been rethinking its order for 10 A380 freighters since October, when Airbus announced a third delay on the giant plane due to wiring problems, putting it two years behind schedule.

UPS's planes were originally scheduled for delivery between 2009 and 2012. The company did not say what new delivery dates it had agreed upon. It is set to make a final decision on the order before the end of this year, a UPS spokesman said.

The U.S. company is Airbus' sole customer for the freighter version of the A380. Rival FedEx Corp. (FDX.N: Quote, Profile, Research) canceled an order and lessor International Lease Finance Corp. and Dubai airline Emirates (EMAIR.UL: Quote, Profile, Research) have switched freighter orders to the passenger version of the plane.

UPS has canceled planes before from Airbus, which is owned by European aerospace company EADS (EAD.PA: Quote, Profile, Research) (EADS.PA: Quote, Profile, Research). When UPS made its A380 order two years ago, it cut its existing order for 90 smaller A300 aircraft to 53.

Delays and cancellations play into the hands of U.S. rival Boeing Co. (BA.N: Quote, Profile, Research), which is strongly marketing its revamped 747-8 jumbo freighter, its biggest plane and the nearest competitor to the mammoth A380.

Earlier this month, UPS ordered 27 of Boeing's smaller 767-300ER freighter aircraft, worth about $3.8 billion at list prices, in a move it said was not related to the review of its A380 order.

UPS shares were down 50 cents at $72.90 on the New York Stock Exchange, while Boeing's were down 14 cents at $90.44.

EADS shares were up 0.4 percent at 25.78 euros in Paris

[fokkerjet]

I bet Louisville Int'l will love hearing this :uhoh:

[touch&go]

We were having a chat in the pub the other week about the 380 and whether it will ever fly with the need for 450 airframes to break even, the consensus of opinion is that the 380 will be scrapped and Airbus will concentrate on its core business being the 319, 320, 330 and the 320 replacement, this will happen after the French elections.

Just an opinion for debate.

[Whitehatter]

It's going to break even at least, Scarebus doesn't need all the orders in before the thing starts in service. Assuming it is on the line for at least another 15 years they should be able to dredge up the orders to cover its costs, and then make money on the support and consumables.

It will certainly be the last VLA project of its kind. Boeing's warmed up 747 is the same, the last throw of the dice for the tube and four design. Next time round the block something new is going to be needed as there won't be the availability of cheap kerosene any more.

No matter how you try and spin it, the planet is a finite size and it's only got so much oil. Eventually it'll either run out or we'll all choke on the fumes first. Some new thinking rather than rehashing sixty year old silhouettes is going to have to happen.

[Ignition Override]

Whitehatter:

The US has enough coal energy in the ground to equal all of the unpumped petroleum in the world, based on the newspaper article today.
A B-52 bomber tested at least one engine using fuel which was processed from coal.

German airline Lufthansa recently ordered the Boeing 747-800, according to the Boeing ads in "USA Today".
How was this received in Toulouse, France?

[Whitehatter]

and your point is....?

Coal? Oh right. Suddenly making kerosene from coal is going to be stupendously easy and cheap. Yeah right. Ask the Germans about that.

It might be an idea for an air force sucking from the taxpayer tit but will UPS and DAS etcetera be able to afford it?

As for LH buying the 747, go and ask the cheerleaders on airliners.net as they love to squabble and spin garbage like that. AFAIK Lufthansa bought it as it's the best size and shape for their needs, plus they got the sweetheart deal a launch customer always gets on a new type. They might even get to fly it if the JAA don't block its certification up.

[Deskjocky]

South Africa's state oil company SASOL pioneered the oil from coal process in the late 70' and early 80's. This was done in response to the oil embargo’s imposed at the time. They still produce some of their petroleum today using this method- problem is its still a fossil fuel.

[Best foot forward]

Didn't the germans do it during WWII?