Airbus' new sales chief has set his sights on winning more than two new customers for the slow-selling A330neo this year, as he seeks to improve the European company's position in the market for long-haul jets.
In his first interview since joining Airbus from Rolls-Royce last month, Eric Schulz said sales must accelerate for both the A330neo and the larger A350-1000 in the next two to three years, while demand remained buoyant for the mid-sized A350-900.
Flight test results from the A330neo, an upgraded version of Airbus's most-sold wide-body jet that is due to enter service this summer, are encouraging, Mr Schulz said at the Singapore Airshow.
"I am very optimistic about what I have seen about the performance of the plane," Mr Schulz said.
Although Airbus beat Boeing in the order race last year, following a final flurry of business by Mr Schulz's predecessor, John Leahy, steadying the demand for Airbus wide-body fleet is a priority after Boeing took three in every four orders in 2017.
"This is an area where we have been most challenged ... and I would be honest by saying that part of my success will be measured by my ability to change that," said Mr Schulz.
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"The next 24 months, the next three years, are the years when things have to accelerate, that is for the A330neo and the A350-1000," he said, adding it was common for airlines to wait until jets entered service before making major decisions.
Thee A350-1000 is due to be delivered to its first customer in coming weeks.
Industry experts say the A330neo, a refresh of the A330 launched with fuel-saving engines in 2014 at a time when oil was above $100 a barrel, has struggled to make its mark due to lower oil prices and the popularity of the underlying model.
Additionally, Boeing has been actively targeting potential customers with its newer Boeing 787, which it says outclasses the older Airbus model.
Mr Schulz said airlines such as those setting up low cost, long-haul operations would favour the A330neo, whose economics would come to the fore as oil prices rise back towards $80.
More coverage from the Future Forum
Election pledges on migration
CDU: "Now is the time to control the German borders and enforce strict border rejections"
SPD: "Border closures and blanket rejections at internal borders contradict the spirit of a common area of freedom"
Skewed figures
In the village of Mevagissey in southwest England the housing stock has doubled in the last century while the number of residents is half the historic high. The village's Neighbourhood Development Plan states that 26% of homes are holiday retreats. Prices are high, averaging around £300,000, £50,000 more than the Cornish average of £250,000. The local average wage is £15,458.
BUNDESLIGA FIXTURES
Friday (UAE kick-off times)
Cologne v Hoffenheim (11.30pm)
Saturday
Hertha Berlin v RB Leipzig (6.30pm)
Schalke v Fortuna Dusseldof (6.30pm)
Mainz v Union Berlin (6.30pm)
Paderborn v Augsburg (6.30pm)
Bayern Munich v Borussia Dortmund (9.30pm)
Sunday
Borussia Monchengladbach v Werder Bremen (4.30pm)
Wolfsburg v Bayer Leverkusen (6.30pm)
SC Freiburg v Eintracht Frankfurt (9on)
more from Janine di Giovanni
A MINECRAFT MOVIE
Director: Jared Hess
Starring: Jack Black, Jennifer Coolidge, Jason Momoa
Rating: 3/5
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
The specs: 2018 BMW R nineT Scrambler
Price, base / as tested Dh57,000
Engine 1,170cc air/oil-cooled flat twin four-stroke engine
Transmission Six-speed gearbox
Power 110hp) @ 7,750rpm
Torque 116Nm @ 6,000rpm
Fuel economy, combined 5.3L / 100km
ADCC AFC Women’s Champions League Group A fixtures
October 3: v Wuhan Jiangda Women’s FC
October 6: v Hyundai Steel Red Angels Women’s FC
October 9: v Sabah FA
In numbers: PKK’s money network in Europe
Germany: PKK collectors typically bring in $18 million in cash a year – amount has trebled since 2010
Revolutionary tax: Investigators say about $2 million a year raised from ‘tax collection’ around Marseille
Extortion: Gunman convicted in 2023 of demanding $10,000 from Kurdish businessman in Stockholm
Drug trade: PKK income claimed by Turkish anti-drugs force in 2024 to be as high as $500 million a year
Denmark: PKK one of two terrorist groups along with Iranian separatists ASMLA to raise “two-digit million amounts”
Contributions: Hundreds of euros expected from typical Kurdish families and thousands from business owners
TV channel: Kurdish Roj TV accounts frozen and went bankrupt after Denmark fined it more than $1 million over PKK links in 2013
Watch live
The National will broadcast live from the IMF on Friday October 13 at 7pm UAE time (3pm GMT) as our Editor-in-Chief Mina Al-Oraibi moderates a panel on how technology can help growth in MENA.
You can find out more here
