Escalation of Dispute ! After Airbus's Independent legal assessment , Qatar Airways Sues Airbus at the High Court in London !

The Dispute Escalation !

On 9th December 21 , Airbus took legal measures against Qatar Airways for maligning the reputation of A350 fleet Aircraft , for grounding a part of it's A350 fleet and blaming Airbus for not fixing the issue of paint peeling from the aircraft fuselage, which Airbus treats as a non-structural surface degradation.

• Qatar Airways has issued legal proceedings against Airbus in the Technology and Construction division of the High Court in London. 
• Qatar Airways says it has grounded 21 aircraft, which is one more than three weeks ago and 8 more since August 21.

• About the upcoming Airbus A350 Freighter version , Al Baker indicated that they might go to rival Boeing , for a competing model, but won’t buy any more A350s from Airbus until the surface issue is fixed.

At that time Airbus took legal measure, it had released statements saying ,

Airbus seeks an independent legal assessment against the mischaracterisation of the non-structural surface degradation on its fleet of A350 aircraft by one of its customers - a well known one !

Airbus says, " it regrets the need to follow such a path, it has become necessary to defend its position and reputation."

Airbus also differentiates this non structural surface degradation with that of the missing expanded copper foil (ECF) on the wings of 13 A350s.

"Airbus wishes to clarify that EASA’s recent proposed corrective steps caused by areas of missing expanded copper foil (ECF) on the wings of 13 A350s as a result of a production process, which has since been adapted, is different in nature."

Qatar Airways did not keep quiet to this Airbus action , infact , the Middle eastern carrier is suing Airbus SE at the High Court in London, escalating the dispute between the European manufacturer and one of its biggest customers. It said ,

Qatar Airways has today issued legal proceedings against Airbus in the Technology and Construction division of the High Court in London.

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. 

History of the Paint Deterioration Dispute !

The paint issue on carbon fibre took shape in the month of January 21, a situation with one of the Qatar Airways aircraft ( A7-ALL) at Shannon triggered a form of  Alarm regarding the probable deterioration of Carbon Fiber Reinforced Plastic (CFRP) skin of  A350 Aircraft Fuselage underneath the Paint layer. 

On 5th of August 2021 , Qatar Airways announced through its official website that it had grounded 13 of it's Airbus A350 aircrafts complying to the instructions from state Regulator Qatar Civil Aviation Authority (QCAA).

On 5th October 2021 , according to Qatar Airways, the rapidly deteriorating surface paint that has led to the grounding of 16 of its Airbus SE A350 aircraft has further affected the lightning protection on Carbon Fibre Reinforced Plastic( CFRP) fuselage and also caused cracks on the composite monolithic structure.

Further heating up the scenario , the Chief Executive Officer Akbar Al Baker also disputed a statement from Airbus that it had identified the cause of the problem, which the European planemaker said is limited to surface paint and doesn’t affect airworthiness. 

EASA View On the Case !

EASA  backs Airbus , in a separate statement, EASA said it visited the Qatar Civil Aviation Authority and viewed some of the affected planes in the month of September. 

“Despite the degraded paint condition, EASA has not at this time identified any airworthiness concerns with the A350 due to the paint deterioration, including the composite structure and the lightning protection of the aircraft,” the European agency said.

Airbus has provided additional guidelines to A350 operators on stripping and painting the aircraft, and no additional inspections are required beyond normal scheduled maintenance, it said.  

Group Chief Executive Officer Akbar Al Baker has earlier disputed the statement from Airbus that it had identified the cause of the problem, which the European planemaker said is limited to surface paint and doesn’t affect airworthiness. 

“It is a problem with the paint that has led to us getting deterioration on the lightning protection of the fuselage and cracks appearing on the composite,” Al Baker said in an interview at an airline industry summit in Boston. The paint is not deteriorating on metal areas of the aircraft, and only where there is “aerodynamic stress,” he said.

“We also need to make it very clear we will not take deliveries of any aircraft unless there is a fix for the problem they have that is acceptable to both our regulator and the airline,” he said. 

Current scenario is , Qatar Airways said in a statement late Monday it would lodge a case and is seeking a rapid resolution. The carrier, which has had 21 aircraft idled on safety grounds by its local regulator, started a legal process “to ensure that Airbus will now address our legitimate concerns without further delay.”

Airbus confirmed Monday it has received a formal claim and is in the process of analyzing the contents, stating it “intends to vigorously defend its position.’ 

Airbus Stand !

Airbus says, the current issue does not affect the Airworthiness of the aircraft . In an earlier interview, hosted by the International Air Transport Association, Airbus Chief Executive Officer Guilluame Faury had said,

"There’s no reason for the planes to be grounded" ,  “We’re trying to resolve the dispute and the disagreement, of course,” Faury said when asked about the situation with Qatar Airways. 

Carbon fibres are non-conducting in nature , and to increase the electrical conductivity on the surface of the A350, Airbus embeds metallic foils in the panels made up of CFRP (Carbon Fibre Reinforced Plastic).

Airbus does not deny the surface degradation issues have affected other customers, though it strongly maintains, they are non-structural, stemming from differing thermal properties of the A350’s carbon-composite shell, its outer paint coatings and a layer of copper lightning protection. Each are affected by temperature swings which can be extreme in Doha, where highs average 108 degrees Farenheit in July.

The company has said it’s weighing longer-term solutions including replacing the expanded copper foil with a different material on future aircraft.

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