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Boeing will be the favourite for Easyjet as it will be cheaper for them in maintaining one type of aircraft model.
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Airbus battles Boeing for £4 billion easyJet order – report
The outcome of a battle for what will be the biggest aircraft order this year, a contract from easyJet PLC worth more than £4 billion, is on a knife-edge after Airbus offered more concessions on price, according to The Times.
The newspaper did not name its source, but said Airbus, the European planemaker owned by European Aeronautic Defence and Space Co and BAE Systems PLC, is attempting to break Boeing Co’s stranglehold as the supplier of aircraft to low-cost airlines.
Budget airlines such as easyJet keep costs down by using a single model of aircraft, which means that Boeing is the favourite for the order for 120 aircraft plus 120 options, the newspaper said.
But in an effort to persuade easyJet to run a mixed fleet, Airbus has promised to cover the cost of some spares, training and other charges for duplicating operations, the article added.
Ray Webster, easyJet’s chief executive, said the Airbus A319 package was now cheaper than Boeing’s 737-700. “The equation is, Boeing at a higher price versus Airbus for a better price and a higher risk,” he is reported as saying.
The list price of 120 Boeing 737s would be about $6.6 billion (£4.5 billion), but the dire state of the aviation market means airlines would be able to win generous discounts.
“A promise to indemnify easyJet against some of the extra cost is the only reason Airbus is still at the negotiating table. Airbus is competing fiercely,” said Chris Avery, an aviation analyst at JP Morgan.
An announcement on the winner of the contract is imminent. Many observers think Boeing is in pole position because easyJet does not at this time need the complications of flying a mixed fleet, the newspaper said.
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