Airbus Changes A350 Design Amid Qatar Airways Dispute

In late 2022, Airbus changed the design of its A350 passenger jet amid a US$2 billion dispute with Qatar Airways over surface damage. This dispute led to a security debate on Thursday, reports Reuters. 

Qatar Airways had filed a lawsuit against Airbus over the deteriorating surface of its A350 in November 2022. The issue started in January 2021, when an A350 was sent to Airbus in Toulouse with reports of cracks. “Qatar Airways was not the only airline experiencing problems, but it has been the airline that has pushed back the most,” reports SimpleFlying.

Both companies have been fighting in court for months over the safety implications of the flaking paint, which exposed corrosion or gaps in a sub-layer of metallic lightning protection, reports Reuters. The core of the case is a copper foil between the carbon fuselage and outer paint on A350 planes, designed to allow lightning strikes to erode safely.

In November 2021, Reuters reported that Airbus was studying the use of perforated copper foil (PCF) because it was lighter than the currently-used expanded copper foil (ECF). In addition, PCF was also expected to ease cracking.

This Thursday, Qatar Airways told a London court that Airbus had started to implement the change and called for more information. The planemaker confirmed its partial use from late last year. "PCF is being used on rear-section parts on aircraft delivered from the end of 2022," an Airbus spokesperson said, as reported by Reuters.

While Qatar Airways has blamed the damage on a possible design defect, Airbus argues the former design remains state-of-the-art and is safe. The decision to start using the new design was described as “significant to the case” by Judge David Waksman.

Unless Airbus and Qatar Airways cut a deal in ongoing settlement talks, both sides will head to a rare corporate trial in June 2023. The dispute between two of the flagship companies of Qatar and France, which have strong economic ties, has risen to the attention of leaders of both countries, who spoke on the subject in recent weeks, according to diplomatic sources consulted by Reuters.

Airbus is not the only planemaker facing paint issues. In November 2022, worldwide operators of Boeing 787 Dreamliner jetliners reported they had experienced paint peeling issues on wing and horizontal stabilizer surfaces due to ultraviolet radiation exposure.

Currently, no Mexican airline operates Airbus’ A350 jets, with low-cost-carriers Viva Aerobus and Volaris operating A320s and A320neos.