Mon, Sep 04, 2006
Champion Out As A380 Chief; Replaced By Former A320 Head
It was a day of highs and lows for several individuals at Airbus
Monday. As 474 eager employee volunteers took their seats for the
first of four passenger-carrying test flights of the Airbus A380...
the European planemaker showed the head if the troubled program,
Charles Champion, the door.
Airbus officials said Champion -- the second chief operating
officer on the A380 program -- was replaced by Mario Heinen, who
previously headed up the company's narrowbody A320 program. The
Washington Post reports Champion will continue to serve as an
advisor.
The move to replace Champion is new Airbus CEO Christian
Streiff's first key appointment since he, too, replaced a key
figure in the A380's development -- original program head, and
later Airbus CEO, Gustav Humbert -- in July.
In his move from overseeing the highly-lucrative A320 program --
Airbus's cash cow -- Heinen will be directly responsible for
ensuring the A380 program is not hit with further delays. Alain
Flourens will replace Heinen as head of the Airbus single-aisle
program, the plane manufacturer said.
As Aero-News reported, heads
rolled earlier this year at Airbus -- and parent company EADS --
following news of added delays in A380 deliveries. Wiring
installation problems reportedly cost EADS over 2 billion euros in
lost profits -- its worst losses since the aerospace consortium was
founded in 2000.
In happier news, hundreds of Airbus employees vied for spots on
the first of four tests -- known as "Early Long Flights" -- to
shakedown the A380 for passenger-carrying operations, in
anticipation of the first customer delivery to launch client
Singapore Airlines before the end of the year.
An Airbus flight crew piloted the jet -- which departed Toulouse
Monday morning for a seven-hour, fully-staffed flight, complete
with meal service -- with company personnel handling all cabin
duties.
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