Airbus and Qatar Airways reach a settlement in their legal dispute over the A350

Airbus and Qatar Airways today reached an «amicable and mutually agreeable settlement», in the words of the European manufacturer, in their legal dispute since the Qatari airline claimed that the paint on its new A350s was peeling and exposing the material underneath.

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Following the initial complaint, Qatar Airways grounded 21 Airbus A350 that the carrier said could pose a risk to passengers. In addition, it suspended 23 deliveries that were still pending.

While Airbus acknowledged quality defects, it always maintained that the aircraft were completely safe. The European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA), which regulates the airline industry in the European Union, backed its position. Last August, the manufacturer revoked all of the airline’s existing orders for A350 aircraft.

End of the dispute

With the agreement announced today, the companies will avoid a potentially damaging court case that could have taken place as early as the middle of this year in London. According to Airbus, the situation does not involve an admission of liability by either side, which will be able to «move forward and work together as partners».

It was difficult to foresee this outcome only a couple of months ago, when both sides had to hand over thousands of pages of documents to each other and the dispute seemed a long way from being resolved.

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In a press release, the European manufacturer remarked that «a repair project is now underway and both parties look forward to getting these aircraft safely back in the air». It further clarified that «the details of the settlement are confidential and the parties will now proceed to discontinue their legal claims».

See also: Dispute with Qatar Airways: Airbus implements design changes to its A350