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UPS says to cancel order for 10 Airbus A380s

Scott Malone
BOSTON
Fri Mar 2, 2007 10:01am EST

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United Parcel Service Inc. aircrafts are loaded with air containers full of packages bound for their final destination at the UPS Worldport All Points International Hub during the peak delivery day in Louisville, Kentucky December 20, 2006. United Parcel Service Inc. said on Friday it planned to cancel an order for 10 Airbus A380 freighters. REUTERS/John Sommers II

BOSTON (Reuters) - United Parcel Service Inc. (UPS.N), which was Airbus' last remaining customer for the freighter version of the A380 superjumbo jet, said on Friday it planned to cancel its order for the delayed plane.

UPS, the world's largest package-delivery company, said it was concerned that Airbus, a unit of EADS (EAD.PA), could not fill the orders in a timely manner.

It originally expected its first plane ordered to be delivered by 2009. But the companies negotiated an extension until 2012, a deadline UPS no longer believes Airbus can meet.

Airbus said on Thursday it would rearrange its production schedule for the A380 freighter to meet UPS' schedule. But UPS said in a statement on Friday it "now understands Airbus is diverting employees from the A380 freighter program to work on the passenger version of the plane."

David Abney, chief operating officer of Atlanta-based UPS added, "Based on our previous discussions, we had felt that 2012 was a reasonable estimate of when Airbus could supply this plane. We no longer are confident that Airbus can adhere to that schedule."

The A380 superjumbo project has faced many prominent delays, with wiring problems putting it two years behind schedule.


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