EADS CEO Denies New Delays On A400M
VILLEPINTE, France (AP) — EADS Chief Executive Louis Gallois says the A400M military transport aircraft is still on course to make its first flight this summer, and the company is sticking to the delivery schedule announced last November.
Airbus’ parent company said last year the aircraft would be delayed by six months, with the risk of a further six-month delay, costing the company as much as 1.4 billion euros ($2 billion) in penalties and other charges.
“We are still in this range,” Gallois said Monday during a news conference in Villepinte, near Paris.
“Our objective is to be closer to six months than one year.”
Press reports in recent days had suggested there could be additional delays.
The military aircraft will be presented in a rollout ceremony in Spain on June 26.
