Airbus hoping to be Obama's first choice; Deal could secure jobs.Byline: BY DAVID JONES David Jones is a common name, particularly in Wales, and there have been several well-known individuals with this name. Variations include Dave Jones and Davy Jones. Daily Post Business Staff Obama could soon be flying around the world on a new superjet su·per·jet n. A supersonic jet airplane. partbuilt on Deeside. Airbus - which builds the wings for all its airliners at Broughton, near Chester - is believed to be preparing to offer Mr Obama a special A380 superjumbo to replace the ageing presidential Air Force One Boeing 747. Company chief executive Tom Enders said the United States was already thinking about new aircraft for the Presidential fleet, and it was "not completely absurd" that the company's flagship superjumbo should be considered. But he added that Airbus was concentrating on winning the rerun re·run n. The act or an instance of rebroadcasting a recorded movie or a recorded television performance. tr.v. re·ran , re·run, re·run·ning, re·runs To present a rerun of. pounds 27bn Pentagon contract for 179 air-to-air refuelling re·fu·el v. re·fu·eled also re·fu·elled, re·fu·el·ing also re·fu·el·ling, re·fu·els also re·fu·els v.tr. To supply again with fuel. v.intr. tanker aircraft for the United States Air Force United States Air Force (USAF) Major component of the U.S. military organization, with primary responsibility for air warfare, air defense, and military space research. It also provides air services in coordination with the other military branches. U.S. - a deal which would bring around pounds 5bn worth of work to the Broughton site and help secure the jobs of its 7,000 workers for many years to come. Airbus is again up against stiff competition from US rival Boeing - whose head office is in Chicago, from where Mr Obama launched his successful bid for the Presidency - prompting fears that he may favour the American firm to supply both the USAF airborne tankers and a new presidential jet. However, both could turn out to be close-run competitions. Mr Obama could be swayed by the A380's green credentials - it is more fuel efficient, emits fewer greenhouse gases and is quieter than the 747. And, in recent times, Airbus's moves to set up plants in states such as Alabama and Mississippi have won it more friends in Congress. Airbus confirmed yesterday that net orders for 2008 stood at 777 planes, compared to 662 sales for Boeing. Airbus delivered a record 483 planes in 2008. Boeing, which was hit by a 58-day machinists' strike, saw deliveries fall to 375 planes. Both companies have seen their order books hit by a downturn in the global aviation market, but have substantial order backlogs which will take some years to clear. Airbus has cut its A380 delivery forecast for 2009 to 18 planes. In 2008 it delivered 12 of the aircraft and took nine new orders. davidrjones@dailypost.co.uk CAPTION(S): A special Airbus A380 superjumbo could be about to replace Airforce One, in the United States; Barack Obama |
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