Qatar Airways has launched legal proceedings against Airbus in the High Court in London after a dispute with the aircraft manufacturer over the degradation of the exterior fuselage surfaces.
The issue has led the airline, one of the big three carriers in the Gulf region, to ground some of its A 350 planes and not accept further deliveries of wide-body aircraft from the European firm until the problem is resolved.
In all our efforts to reach a constructive solution with Airbus in relation to the accelerated surface degradation condition that affects the Airbus A 350 aircraft, Qatar Airways said in a statement.
The airline has been left with no alternative but to seek a resolution to the dispute via the courts. The plane manufacturer said earlier this month it was ready to seek independent arbitration to settle the dispute.
The European Aviation Safety Agency EASA has confirmed its findings that the paint-related issue has no airworthiness impact on the A350 fleet. The firm accused Qatar Airways of misrepresenting the problem as an airworthiness issue.
The airline said it had initiated legal proceedings in the technology and construction division of London's High Court in order to address our legitimate concerns without further delay. Qatar Airway has currently grounded 21 A 350 aircraft.
We strongly believe that Airbus must undertake a thorough investigation of this condition to establish its full root cause, it added.
Without a thorough understanding of the root cause of the condition, it is not possible for Qatar Airways to establish whether a proposed repair solution will correct the underlying condition.