Obbligazioni societarie Monitor Bond Industria Aeronautica Worldwide e Linee Aeree Europee (1 Viewer)

Imark

Forumer storico
Fitch riduce l'outlook di Boeing, assumendo una serie di concause riconducibili ad una attesa debolezza di fondo dell'aeronautica commerciale ed insieme a problemi propri di Boeing.

I numerosi ritardi nell'esecuzione di alcuni importanti progetti hanno portato a flussi di cassa negativi nel 2008 per importi significativi nonché ad un notevole indebolimento della posizione di liquidità disponibile, sebbene quella attuale, rafforzata anche per tramite dell'emissione di bond lunghi, sia considerata da Fitch soddisfacente.

Il leverage resta contenutissimo presso Boeing, ma è decisamente più elevato presso la finanziaria infragruppo.

Problemi potrebbero venire dalla divisione finanziaria, anche in conseguenza dell'atteso default di linee aree durante questo ciclo recessivo, anche a causa di uno scarso livello di diversificazione della clientela.

C'è molto di più nel report, vale la pena leggerlo.

Fitch Revises Boeing's Outlook to Negative; Affirms 'A+/F1' IDRs

30 Apr 2009 9:32 AM (EDT)


Fitch Ratings-New York-30 April 2009: Fitch Ratings has affirmed the following Issuer Default Ratings (IDRs) and outstanding debt ratings for The Boeing Company (BA) and Boeing Capital Corporation (BCC):

--Long-term IDR at 'A+';
--Senior unsecured debt at 'A+';
--Bank facilities at 'A+';
--Short-term IDR at 'F1';
--Commercial paper at 'F1'.

Fitch has revised the Rating Outlook on all classes of debt to Negative from Stable.

The ratings cover approximately $9.3 billion of debt ($5.7 billion at BA, including approximately $380 million of non-recourse debt, and $3.6 billion at BCC). BCC's ratings are linked to BA's ratings due to the existence of a support agreement and other factors such as an operating agreement and transactional support provided to BCC by BA.

The Negative Outlook reflects Fitch's higher level of concern regarding several issues including the global recession's impact on the commercial aerospace industry, increasing pressure on Department of Defense (DoD) budgets, the potential for further delays in the 787 program, the health of the aircraft finance market, and BA's significant build-up of inventories in 2008, which significantly reduced BA's liquidity position.

Additional rating concerns include the susceptibility of the commercial aerospace industry to shocks such as terrorism and disease; the likelihood that several of BA's large defense programs will be reduced or eliminated in future DoD budgets; portfolio concentration at BCC; margin levels which are low for the rating category; periodic labor disruptions; and the performance of some programs at both Boeing Commercial Airplanes (BCA) and Integrated Defense Systems (IDS). The pension deficit and several litigation actions are also potential concerns. The outbreak of swine flu is not a key driver of the outlook revision, but it contributes to concerns about the commercial aerospace industry.

BA's debt ratings are supported by the company's balanced business portfolio (approximately 50% defense and 50% commercial), financial flexibility, competitive positions in both of its main business lines, large backlog, high levels of defense spending, and solid credit metrics.

BA's liquidity position and favorable debt maturity schedule also support the ratings. Fitch believes that BA has evolved into a more diverse and lower risk company than it was at the beginning of the last aerospace down cycle that began in late 2001.

As of March 31, 2009, BA's liquidity position, excluding BCC, was approximately $6 billion, consisting of $4.5 billion in cash and investments, and complete availability under $1.5 billion of bank facilities.

BCC also had $192 million of cash and $1.5 billion of bank facility availability as of the end of the first quarter. Liquidity at BA was enhanced in the first quarter with the proceeds of $1.85 billion of long-term debt issuance.

While Fitch considers this liquidity position to be solid, it fell by $8.5 billion during 2008 because of significant cash usage attributable to the delays in the 787 and 747-8 programs and the machinists strike. The resulting inventory build-up drove negative $3.8 billion of free cash flow in 2008 (excluding BCC and after dividends).

Fitch estimates that BA's free cash flow in the first quarter was negative $500 million, excluding BCC. Some of the inventory build will reverse in 2009, but the bulk of the inventories will not generate cash until 787 deliveries begin, currently scheduled for 2010.

BA's underfunded pension ($8.4 billion deficit compared to a surplus of $4.7 billion at the end of 2007) could affect liquidity in the medium term, but required contributions are manageable in 2009 and 2010. BA has significant financial flexibility in its ability to stop share repurchases, which totaled $7.4 billion over the past three years, but which should be minimal in 2009; share repurchases in the first quarter totaled only $50 million.

Though BA is forecasting 480-485 airplane deliveries in 2009, Fitch's ratings incorporate expectations for production cuts later in 2009 and into 2010.

Fitch believes that BA could maintain its current ratings with BCA production rate reductions to levels seen in the last trough (2003/2004) assuming the company takes prompt actions to adjust its cost base to the lower production levels, as the company did starting in 2001 and 2002 during the last downturn. As a result, production cuts in addition to the recently announced 777 reductions in mid-2010 will not alone lead to additional ratings actions. Several factors are helping to support BCA's production rates in 2009: overbooking of delivery slots, deferred deliveries from 2008 due to the machinists strike (105 aircraft), and a large backlog (3,589 at the end of March).

The 787 has become an increasingly important credit issue, thus Fitch may review the ratings if there are additional material delays or problems.

Fitch believes that a significant rating benefit of keeping the 787 on track will be the cash generation from inventory reduction as deliveries begin, as well as a likely decrease in R&D expense, which will aid BCA's margins.

In addition, if 787 deliveries start in 2010, they will help offset possible delivery declines of other models, although reported operating margins at BCA might be diluted. First flight is now scheduled for the second quarter, and first delivery is projected for the first quarter of 2010, almost two years late. There is still risk in this program, including flight testing, certification, and delivery ramp up.

Fitch expects that BA's defense operations will continue to support the company's credit ratings, but the level of uncertainty for defense spending has increased in the past few months.

The Obama Administration is having an impact on defense budgets sooner than Fitch expected. However, the Administration's initial core fiscal year (FY) 2010 defense budget recommendation ($534 billion) is 4% higher than the enacted FY2009 core budget, providing support to the industry's financial condition at least through FY2010.

In early April, U.S. Secretary of Defense Gates made some recommendations for the fiscal 2010 DoD budget including program cancellations and delays. Among the large DoD contractors Boeing appears to be most at risk on the downside from Secretary Gates' comments, with several programs under pressure (Future Combat Systems, some missile defense, CSAR-X, C-17, etc.), although a few of the company's other programs (such as the F/A-18) could benefit from increased spending.

In 2008 BA's leverage (total gross debt to EBITDA), excluding BCC, was 0.6 times (x), compared with 0.5x at the end of 2007. Interest coverage in 2008 was 22.1x, compared with 25.1x in 2007. Fitch projects that BA's leverage will remain under 1.0x in 2009, including the impact of the company's proposed debt issuances. The preceding calculations exclude BCC by accounting for the subsidiary using the equity method, and non-recourse debt at BA is also excluded.

Boeing Capital:

A key rating driver for BCC's ratings is the continued support of BA.

Additional important rating factors are BCC's ability to balance support of BA's aircraft sales with efforts to mitigate industry cyclicality, aircraft and obligor concentration risks and the susceptibility of the commercial aerospace sector to exogenous shocks such as terrorist acts or disease pandemics.

The Negative Rating Outlook for BCC reflects the potential adverse effects of the recession and challenging credit market conditions on commercial aircraft demand, lease rates and aircraft values.

Due to global recessionary economic conditions, Fitch believes the potential for further airline defaults or rationing of airline fleets is relatively high over the near-term.

As a result, BCC's inventory of repossessed or returned aircraft is likely to increase and may pose significant challenges with respect to the sale or re-leasing of returned or repossessed aircraft. Customer concentration within the BCC's portfolio remains a concern, particularly exposure to US commercial airlines, which comprises 74% of overall portfolio exposure.

BCC's top four customers, all U.S. airlines, represented nearly 50% of overall portfolio exposure at Dec. 31, 2008.

Fitch notes that the top customer exposures are supported by aircraft collateral value and/or transactional support from Boeing. Therefore, Fitch expects an increase in credit-related losses and impairment charges over the near-term. However, an increase in origination volume and corresponding financing revenue will minimize the adverse impact on profitability.

In light of challenging credit market conditions, Fitch expects BCC will provide financing to support Boeing aircraft deliveries over the next two years. Fitch estimates that BCC's financing volume may range between $2 billion - $5 billion over this time. Fitch believes BCC's funding base can support a modest increase in financing volume.

Overall liquidity remains substantial. In addition to its access to BA as a funding source, BCC had $192 million in available cash balances and $6.5 billion of funding capacity at March 31 2009, which includes approximately $5 billion of funding availability under a recently filed debt shelf registration and full availability under a $1.5 billion commercial paper program.

Furthermore, Fitch expects BCC to generate approximately $250 million in annual operating cashflow and an additional $500 million via portfolio amortization or aircraft sales annually.

As the aircraft portfolio and corresponding debt has declined over the past five years, the company has maintained leverage at 5.0x via dividend payments to BA. In light of a potential need to borrow to meet BCC's financing activities, Fitch expects BA, if necessary, would provide capital support needed to continue to maintain leverage at that level
 

Imark

Forumer storico
Nuovi ordini per Bombardier nella divisione trasporti terrestri...

MAY 5, 2009, 1:15 P.M. ET
PRESS RELEASE: Alstom and Bombardier to Supply 83 Regional Trains to the Urban Transport Network of Stuttgart in Germany


Deutsche Bahn Regio AG has placed an order totalling EUR412 million with Alstom (Paris:ALO) and Bombardier for 83 new regional EMU1 trains. Alstom's share of this contract is EUR112 million. The trains will serve the 6 lines of the Stuttgart city and suburban rail network, carrying around 330,000 passengers every day. Manufacturing will take place in Alstom's factory in Salzgitter and Bombardier's Hennigsdorf facility, both located in Germany, with delivery scheduled between February and December 2012.

Designed in close cooperation with Stuttgart's urban rail operator, the ET 430 trains will each comprise 4 cars with a carrying capacity of up to 494 passengers per train. The maximum speed of 140 km/h and the acceleration and braking performance of the electrical multiple units will help to increase service frequency. Each train will feature 24 automatic doors and a set of gap bridges to help passengers board and alight, while the wide central aisles will facilitate movement within and between cars. In addition to onboard screens providing users with live rail traffic updates, excellent visibility and four surveillance cameras within each car will ensure passenger safety.

Eco-friendly technologies have also been brought on board, with regenerative brakes that allow braking energy to be recovered and fed back into the electric power network. The energy consumption of the new trains will be about 40% less than the recent vehicles. Similarly, heat released by components such as the transformer and converter will be used to heat the cars, which will generate significant cost savings. The trains have been designed in accordance with the latest European standards for interoperability, accessibility and safety in tunnels. They also meet current passive safety requirements.

"We would like to offer to our customers best services by consistently investing in modern, reliable and energy-efficient vehicles, declared Dr. Lutz Buck??n, responsible for procurements of Deutsche Bahn. The DB will remain one of the largest customers of the industry, whose offers will also guarantee jobs in the future."

"Deutsche Bahn has selected a range of modern, tried and tested trains by awarding this new contract to us and we are delighted to be contributing to the improvement of transport services in the city of Stuttgart and its suburbs", said Dr. Martin Lange, managing director of Alstom Transport in Germany.

"The client asked us to provide trains combining advanced technologies with excellent passenger capacities. The ET 430 will provide commuters with an environmentally friendly, comfortable and safe means of transport that meets the local transport requirements of tomorrow", added Stephan Krenz, President Business Unit Germany & Scandinavia and Managing Director Germany von Bombardier Transportation
 

Imark

Forumer storico
Ed intanto i primi conti con il calo delle consegne di business jets nei primi tre mesi dell'anno. Per ora il calo del 25% delle ultime stime di Bombardier sembrerebbe essere in linea con quanto si sta verificando, nel tempo, si vedrà... è cmq difficile che le cose migliorino rapidamente, più facile che ci sia ancora da scendere con i numeri.

General aviation aircraft deliveries drop

BY MOLLY MCMILLIN

The Wichita Eagle

WICHITA - Deliveries of general aviation aircraft fell 41 percent and billings dropped 18 percent in the first three months of the year.
Manufacturers shipped 462 piston, turboprop and business jet aircraft during the first quarter, down from 785 a year ago.

Billings fell from $5.3 billion to $4.34 billion.

"This is an extremely difficult time for our industry," Pete Bunce, General Aviation Manufacturers Association president and CEO, said in a statement.

Along with a down economy, the industry is dealing with "unwarranted criticism" focused on business aircraft, Bunce said.

In the past few months, the industry has shed more than 15,000 jobs.
The piston aircraft shipments were hit the hardest. Deliveries fell 55 percent, from 399 to 179. Business jet deliveries fell 36 percent, from 297 to 191.

Deliveries of turboprops bucked the trend, rising 3.4 percent to 92.

In Wichita, Bombardier Learjet delivered 17 Learjets in the first quarter, down 23 percent from 22 delivered last year.

Cessna shipped 135 planes, down 40 percent from 226 aircraft delivered a year ago.

And Hawker Beechcraft shipped 57 aircraft for civil use during the quarter, down 21 percent from a year ago when the company delivered 72 planes.
In addition, Hawker Beechcraft delivered 29 T-6A trainers to the military, an increase from 17 a year ago
 

Imark

Forumer storico
Nuovi ordini anche per Boeing, dalle linee aeree turche, per 5 Boeing 777.

UPDATE 1-Turkish Airlines orders five Boeing 777-300ERs

Wed May 6, 2009 6:02am EDT

First Turkish Airlines purchase of new 777s from Boeing
* Planes valued at $1.36 billion
(Adds details, background)

ISTANBUL, May 6 (Reuters) - Boeing Co (BA.N) and Turkish Airlines (THYAO.IS) have signed an order for five Boeing 777-300ER planes valued at $1.36 billion at current list prices, Boeing said on Wednesday.
The purchases are part of a large-scale expansion plan by the partly-state owned flag carrier, which is buying up to 105 planes from Airbus and Boeing by 2023.

The Turkish carrier currently operates a fleet that includes 65 Boeing planes, but Boeing said this was the first time it had purchased new 777s directly from Boeing.

The airline, which has not yet issued a statement on the order, aims to carry 25 million passengers this year, up from 22.5 million last year.
Shares in the airline were unchanged at 8.30 lira on Wednesday.

Turkish Airlines Chief Executive Temel Kotil told Reuters earlier this year the company planned to invest more than $6 billion by 2016, including new plane orders from Boeing and Airbus (EAD.PA) to expand its fleet.

The Turkish carrier's large-scale expansion programme comes as much of the industry cuts capacity and raises fares amid the global economic woes. (Writing by Daren Butler; Editing by Jon Loades-Carter)
 

Imark

Forumer storico
Ed intanto EADS-Airbus taglia la produzione dei nuovi A380: saranno 14 anziché 18 nel 2009, mentre resteranno 20 nel 2010. Stima che la cosa non abbia impatto sull'EBITDA del 2009.

Airbus Cuts A380 Deliveries as Airlines Resist Taking Planes

By Andrea Rothman

May 6 (Bloomberg) -- Airbus SAS, the largest commercial aircraft maker, cut its delivery schedule for the A380 superjumbo as airlines resist accepting large planes when demand for flights is depressed by the global recession.

Airbus plans to hand over 14 double-decker A380s this year, down from the 18 planes it had planned, the Toulouse, France- based manufacturer said today in a statement. Airbus intends to deliver 20 A380s next year. The reduction will have “no significant impact” on earnings before interest and taxes this year, the company said.

“Due to the current economic and aviation crisis and following specific requests for deferrals, Airbus is adapting its A380 aircraft delivery schedule,” the planemaker said. Airbus will take “mitigating actions” against the negative effects on cash flow, it said. Airbus is a unit of European Aeronautic, Defence & Space Co.

Global international air traffic fell 11.1 percent in March, deepening the pace of a decline that began in September, the International Air Transport Association said April 28. The global outbreak of swine flu, which began in late April, has worsened the forecast for airline traffic in the short term.
Airbus confirmed that for 2009 it still expects to deliver about the same number of planes as in 2008, when it handed over 483 aircraft. For future production, rates will depend on airline demand and availability of customer financing, the manufacturer added.

Late Production

Production of the A380, which has 525 seats in its most common configuration, or about 250 more than Boeing Co.’s newest model, the 787 Dreamliner, is running two years late because of wiring difficulties. EADS is also struggling with delays on the A400M military transport, and has taken 1.74 billion euros ($2.32 billion) in charges on that program.

The A380’s list price is $327 million, though the earliest customers for planes get substantial discounts. In a survey of A380 customers by Bloomberg News in April, airlines and one leasing firm said they expected to take only 15 of the planes this year.

Singapore Airlines Ltd. And Qantas Airways Ltd. said in April that they planned to take four A380s each this year, while Air France-KLM Group said it expected two. Emirates said then it planned to get seven A380s in the fiscal year ending March 31, 2010, equating to five deliveries in the calendar year.

Air France and Kingfisher Airlines Ltd. of India are among buyers that have deferred A380 deliveries. Airbus set a goal of 12 A380 handovers in 2008 and achieved it.
 

Imark

Forumer storico
Bisognerà tenere d'occhio le compagnie aeree USA per monitorare cancellazioni e posticipi di ordinativi, specie per Boeing che, come si è visto, vede in queste società una fetta importante del proprio mercato.

Come si vede - e come da molti anni oramai - si tratta di società stabilmente con un piede nella fossa del Ch11 ed uno fuori. Nei periodi di crisi, è facile che i piedi in quella fossa ci finiscano entrambi... ;) e Fitch dice che, se non verrà un turnaround nelle revenues (che, è facile prevedere, non verrà questa estate) qui si assisterà a scene consuete ad ogni downturn.


Fitch: Near-Term Rebound in Revenue Fundamentals & Credit Market Access Urgent for U.S. Airlines

06 May 2009 11:42 AM (EDT)


Fitch Ratings-Chicago-06 May 2009: Fitch Ratings views a near-term rebound in revenue fundamentals and credit market access as increasingly urgent if the U.S. airline industry is to avoid another period of intense liquidity pressure as macroeconomic and air travel demand fundamentals improve only slowly moving into 2010. In the spring edition of 'Airline Credit Navigator,' Fitch also says in spite of cash flow support delivered by plunging crude oil and jet fuel prices since last summer's alarming peak, the outlook for operating margins and free cash flow has taken a turn for the worse among most U.S. carriers in early 2009.

'Despite deep concerns related to the revenue environment, low fuel prices represent a huge source of cash flow support for the industry,' said Bill Warlick, senior director at Fitch Ratings. 'We estimate that U.S. carriers as a group could realize over $17 billion of annualized cash savings this year as a result of the dramatic decline in spot jet fuel prices from over $4.00 per gallon at last summer's peak to less than $1.50 per gallon early this year.'

While some U.S. carriers had limited success in raising new capital in the first quarter, access to credit markets remains highly constrained. With heavy and steady refinancing requirements over the next few years, this situation will need to change quickly if liquidity levels are to remain comfortable during a prolonged period of operating stress.

'Even factoring in a slow improvement in year-over-year unit revenue comparisons as the economy stabilizes, U.S. airlines generally lack the free cash flow generation power to fund heavy debt maturities without solid access to the capital markets,' continued Warlick. 'While the industry has historically had success in tapping new sources of liquidity even when operating conditions are poor, the current state of the world financial system and the very limited size of remaining unencumbered asset bases will preclude any rapid return to the era of open aircraft-backed debt financing seen earlier in the decade.'

Fitch says the greatest risk factor for the industry over the near-term is the potential for further weakness in demand, yields and passenger revenue per available seat mile (RASM) extending through the summer as the global recession continues. While some very preliminary signs of a moderation in year-over-year RASM comparisons started to take shape in April 2009 as booking trends seemed to stabilize at the March lows, new concerns appeared on April 27 as the swine flu virus began to spread beyond Mexico.

The scope of any immediate revenue shock linked to swine flu is likely to be limited to heavily-affected areas including Mexico where total U.S. industry exposure is relatively small. Should the number of new flu-related deaths remain low, with a potential leveling off of new cases by early summer, the industry revenue shock will be relatively mild. In addition, margin pressure in affected markets will be contained in part by announced schedule reductions aimed at temporarily realigning capacity with a lower level of demand.

Airlines currently rated by Fitch include: --AMR Corp. 'CCC'; Negative Outlook;

--Continental Airlines, Inc. 'B-'; Stable Outlook;
--Delta Air Lines, Inc. 'B'; Negative Outlook;
--JetBlue Airways Corp. 'B-'; Negative Outlook;
--Southwest Airlines Co. 'BBB+'; Stable Outlook;
--UAL Corp. 'B-'; Negative Outlook;
--US Airways Group, Inc. 'CCC'; Negative Outlook. The special report 'Airline Credit Navigator' is now available at 'www.fitchratings.com'
 

Imark

Forumer storico
Arrivata anche la trimestrale di EADS. Per Airbus i "gross orders" (ossia gli ordinativi di nuovi aeroplani senza considerare le eventuali cancellazioni) sono stati 22, contro i 420 dello scorso anno...

Non sono troppo marcati i deferrals, almeno per ora, ma cresce il magazzino (a caussa della componentistica ritirata ma non impiegata per via del rallentamento nella produzione).

MAY 12, 2009, 6:23 A.M. ET EADS CFO:Continued Inventory Build In '10; Not Many Deferrals


PARIS (Dow Jones)--European Aeronautic Defence & Space Co. NV (EAD) expects its inventories to continue rising in 2010, even though it isn't seeing many aircraft delivery deferrals from customers, Chief Financial Officer Hans Peter Ring said Tuesday.

In disclosing steep declines in first-quarter revenue and earnings earlier Tuesday, EADS said inventory buildup is negatively impacting results and cash flow.

In a conference call, Ring said order overbooking should ease somewhat in 2010, though the level won't vary too much in the coming few years from current levels.

Ring said the company's Power8 cost-reduction program is proceeding as expected, although he declined to be more specific.

He said research and development outlays will reach EUR3 billion this year, which likely will be a peak, easing in coming years.

He said selling prices for long-range aircraft are under downward pressure, although those for shorter-range single-aisle planes are steady.
He said negotiations with seven nations over delays in the troubled A400M military aircraft program are underway, and there would be some news about the talks in coming weeks. Ring said that this news may be more technical in nature, but didn't elaborate.
Company Web site: www.eads.com

........................

EADS Struggles to Gauge Demand, Earnings as Airbus Sales Slump

By Andrea Rothman
May 12 (Bloomberg) -- European Aeronautic, Defence & Space Co. said it can’t gauge demand or earnings beyond the end of this year as airlines cancel or defer Airbus orders and costs from the delayed A400M military-transport plane escalate.

Airbus will struggle to win the 300 jetliner contracts it’s targeting this year and faces an earnings squeeze from falling prices, mounting inventories and a bias toward less-profitable single-aisle aircraft, EADS said in a statement today. The A400M may lead to a charge this half and further costs in the future.

EADS lost as much as 6.4 percent in French trading after reporting a 40 percent drop in first-quarter net income to 170 million euros ($231 million). Sales at the company, which is based in Paris and Munich, fell 14 percent to 8.5 billion euros and earnings before interest and taxes slumped 70 percent.

“EADS’s statement makes our sell case for us,” said Nick Cunningham, an analyst at Evolution Securities in London. “Airbus will have an increasingly torrid time as volumes drop sharply following airline delivery deferrals. Forecasts are very vulnerable to trading conditions and A400M charges.”

EADS shares were trading down 52 cents, or 4.5 percent, at 10.83 euros as of 11:49 a.m. in the French capital. The stock has declined 10 percent this year, compared with a 4.8 percent increase at Chicago-based Boeing Co., the second-biggest maker of commercial aircraft after Airbus SAS.
EADS’s Ebit figure will decline this year while remaining positive, Chief Financial Officer Hans Peter Ring said on a conference call, while revenue will be little changed.

‘More Challenging’

The company faces “limited visibility towards the end of the year and beyond,” Ring said, adding that the 300-plane Airbus-order goal, excluding deferrals, “is becoming more challenging in the current market environment.”

Airline traffic fell 11 percent in March, continuing a retreat that began in September, while an outbreak of swine flu last month has worsened the short-term forecast for air travel, according to the International Air Transport Association.

Airbus, which contributes two-thirds of EADS’s revenue, handed over 116 planes in the quarter versus 123 a year earlier. The unit delivered six fewer A330 and A340 widebody jetliners, which have a list price of as much as $250 million apiece, or about three times the value of a single-aisle A320.

The unit has also scrapped planes to accelerate narrowbody output to 40 per month and will cut the rate to 34 by October from the current 36.
Working capital deteriorated in the quarter, mirroring a build-up of parts inventories at Airbus due to a mismatch between production and deliveries, EADS said.

Delays to the A400M resulting from engine-design problems led EADS to record a 120-million-euro charge in the first quarter and the program remains the company’s greatest financial risk, with a “high level of uncertainty,” it said.

The transport plane is running at least three years behind a planned delivery schedule and EADS is negotiating with seven countries that ordered 180 planes in 2003 as it seeks a new contract in which governments would shoulder more of the risk.
 

lorenzo63

Age quod Agis
Ed intanto EADS-Airbus taglia la produzione dei nuovi A380: saranno 14 anziché 18 nel 2009, mentre resteranno 20 nel 2010. Stima che la cosa non abbia impatto sull'EBITDA del 2009.

Airbus Cuts A380 Deliveries as Airlines Resist Taking Planes

By Andrea Rothman

May 6 (Bloomberg) -- Airbus SAS, the largest commercial aircraft maker, cut its delivery schedule for the A380 superjumbo as airlines resist accepting large planes when demand for flights is depressed by the global recession.

Airbus plans to hand over 14 double-decker A380s this year, down from the 18 planes it had planned, the Toulouse, France- based manufacturer said today in a statement. Airbus intends to deliver 20 A380s next year. The reduction will have “no significant impact” on earnings before interest and taxes this year, the company said.

“Due to the current economic and aviation crisis and following specific requests for deferrals, Airbus is adapting its A380 aircraft delivery schedule,” the planemaker said. Airbus will take “mitigating actions” against the negative effects on cash flow, it said. Airbus is a unit of European Aeronautic, Defence & Space Co.

Global international air traffic fell 11.1 percent in March, deepening the pace of a decline that began in September, the International Air Transport Association said April 28. The global outbreak of swine flu, which began in late April, has worsened the forecast for airline traffic in the short term.
Airbus confirmed that for 2009 it still expects to deliver about the same number of planes as in 2008, when it handed over 483 aircraft. For future production, rates will depend on airline demand and availability of customer financing, the manufacturer added.

Late Production

Production of the A380, which has 525 seats in its most common configuration, or about 250 more than Boeing Co.’s newest model, the 787 Dreamliner, is running two years late because of wiring difficulties. EADS is also struggling with delays on the A400M military transport, and has taken 1.74 billion euros ($2.32 billion) in charges on that program.

The A380’s list price is $327 million, though the earliest customers for planes get substantial discounts. In a survey of A380 customers by Bloomberg News in April, airlines and one leasing firm said they expected to take only 15 of the planes this year.

Singapore Airlines Ltd. And Qantas Airways Ltd. said in April that they planned to take four A380s each this year, while Air France-KLM Group said it expected two. Emirates said then it planned to get seven A380s in the fiscal year ending March 31, 2010, equating to five deliveries in the calendar year.

Air France and Kingfisher Airlines Ltd. of India are among buyers that have deferred A380 deliveries. Airbus set a goal of 12 A380 handovers in 2008 and achieved it.

Speriamo che stavolta si ricorino di fargli il pieno...ero a Gaziantep quando l'aereo turco cadde... mi ricordo che arrivò 15 min prima di partire, un' autobotte azzurra e gli fece rifornimento...
 

lorenzo63

Age quod Agis
Turbulent Times for British Airways

May 22

Times are tough for the airline industry. But British Airways can't lay the blame for its catastrophic fall from record profit to record loss entirely at the feet of the global economy.

British Airways Chief Executive Willie Walsh spoke Friday of the harshest trading environment the company has ever faced as he reported a worse-than-expected full-year pre-tax loss of £401 million ($635.8 million), but some of British Airways' problems are of its own making.

After all, European rival Air France-KLM said earlier this week it was seeing signs of stabilization in both cargo and passenger operations and although it still posted an operating loss, managed to exceed guidance.

British Airways' operating problems at Terminal 5 when it opened last year seriously damaged its reputation and exacerbated a tough operating environment where competition for passenger volumes is intense. British Airways' high-yielding premium passenger traffic fell 13% in the last six months as corporate travel volumes declined.

Costs remain a challenge for the U.K. flag carrier. Granted, last summer's soaring fuel prices and the weakness of the British pound were unavoidable but British Airways also failed to reduce non-fuel costs in the fourth quarter even after exchange rate fluctuations. Limited progress on talks with cabin crew to reduce staff costs are also a concern. Threatened industrial action by the unions would inevitably hurt passenger bookings.

The biggest potential positive for the company -- its proposed merger with Iberia -- is on hold due to poor trading conditions and a lack of visibility over costs and pensions. The £1.7 billion hole in BA's pension fund is expected to deepen to as much as £3 billion at the next actuarial valuation later this year which would increase balance-sheet liabilities and affect the company's ability to raise additional funds.

The one bit of good news is that fuel costs will significantly reduce this year to around £400 million. But that's as far as it goes. British Airways has scrapped all other guidance and signaled there is more pain to come. For that, British Airways partly has itself to blame.
 

lorenzo63

Age quod Agis
EADS 1Q Net Income EUR170M Vs EUR285M

FRANKFURT (Dow Jones)--The European Aeronautic Defence And Space Co. (5370.FR) said Tuesday net income in the first quarter dropped to EUR 170 million from EUR 285 million a year ago due to weaker order intake.

Based on under-proportional quarterly deliveries than in the same period of the previous year and less other favorable phasing effects, revenues stood at EUR 8.5 billion, EBIT before one-off at EUR 0.4 billion. The Net Cash Position remains solid at EUR 8.7 billion and provides a stable basis for the years to come. EADS is well positioned to face the crisis, although there is limited visibility towards the end of the year and beyond.

Louis Gallois, CEO of EADS said: "Despite the economic challenges, EADS remains robust. We continue to proactively monitor our order book and deliveries and we are improving our efficiency. With regard to the A400M program, which is a big concern for us, we need to find common solutions on the technical and the commercial frame of the contract to achieve a balanced sharing of the risks with our customers. Nevertheless, even in these tough times, we remain fully committed to investing in our business with a view to the long term."

Revenues of the Group amounted to EUR 8.5 billion (Q1 2008: EUR 9.9 billion) reflecting under-proportional Airbus deliveries (116 aircraft compared to 123 in Q1 2008), less other favorable phasing effects, negative foreign exchange impacts and lower revenue recognition in the A400M program. However, revenues improved at Astrium (up 20%) and Eurocopter (up 4%).

EADS' EBIT for the first quarter of 2009 amounted to EUR 232 million compared to EUR 769 million in the previous year. This decrease came mainly from negative foreign exchange impacts and an A400M accounting charge.

EADS achieved a Net Income of EUR 170 million (Q1 2008: EUR 285 million), or earnings per share of EUR 0.21 (earnings per share Q1 2008: EUR 0.35). Self-financed R&D expenses slightly increased to EUR 562 million (Q1 2008: EUR 534 million). This reflects Airbus' and Eurocopter's continuing aircraft development programs.

Order intake amounted to EUR 9.3 billion (Q1 2008: EUR 39.3 billion), clearly reflecting lower commercial aircraft orders at Airbus and Eurocopter but supported by the order for 35 Ariane 5 worth more than EUR 4 billion and France's order for 22 NH90 helicopters booked in Q1 2009. At the end of Mar. 2009, EADS' order book remained at a record high, at EUR 412.6 billion (year-end 2008: EUR 400.2 billion), benefiting from a EUR 13 billion favorable U.S. dollar impact. Orders within the commercial aircraft business are based on list prices.

As for the A400M, the first aircraft is progressing towards first flight. It is now undergoing systems testing, while the second aircraft is complete and about to start systems testing. The customer OCCAR recently announced that the seven launch nations have agreed to a three-month moratorium period lasting until the end of Jun. 2009. This provides an opportunity for all partners of the program to agree on the way ahead for a certain number of unresolved issues.

The first quarter of 2009 confirms the trends described at the beginning of the year. EADS expects Airbus to capture up to 300 new gross orders in 2009, even if it is becoming more challenging in the current market environment. Based on a stable delivery assumption and a U.S. dollar rate of EUR 1 = US$ 1.39, EADS revenues should be roughly in line with the 2008 level.

Under these assumptions, EBIT before one-off should be down in 2009 but significantly positive supported by robust underlying performance. Compared to 2008, EBIT will be negatively impacted by increased Research & Development (R&D) expenses, by significant hedging deterioration, price deterioration, increasing customer financing and support activity costs, partly offset by further Power8 cost savings. Concerning one-off impacts, revised industrial plans to complete the A400M program could lead to a substantial charge in the first half of 2009, weighing on EBIT. If and when EADS has an accurate view of the costs in H1, the Group will revert to the cost-at-completion methodology.
 

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