Talks continue over delayed second Emirates A380

Dubai's Emirates airline said on Sunday it was still in talks with Airbus about the delayed delivery of a second A380 superjumbo.

"The delivery of our second A380 aircraft will be pushed back by a few weeks," a spokeswoman for the airline owned by the Dubai government told AFP.

"Discussions are under way with Airbus regarding the delivery date," she said without giving further details.

The French weekly Journal du Dimanche reported on Sunday that Emirates would not receive the second A380 on order before the end of October, amounting to a two-month delay.

The airline "will also have to go without at least one of two other aircraft due for delivery this year," the weekly said, adding that Airbus cited delays in finishing the cabins as the reason it was running behind schedule.

Airbus has not commented about the delay. A spokesman for the aircraft manufacturer told AFP two weeks ago that it is "in discussions with Emirates to determine a delivery date" for the second A380.

He said Airbus had set itself an ambitious target to deliver 12 A380s this year, four of which have been ordered by Singapore Airlines and one by Emirates.

Emirates, the Middle East's biggest airline, put its first giant A380 into service on August 1 with a direct flight from Dubai to New York.

It has said that it will receive a total of five planes during its current financial year ending next March.

Emirates, with 58 firm orders for the A380 out of a total 198 from manufacturer EADS, is the biggest customer for the delay-plagued European plane and is the second client to take delivery after Singapore Airlines which already has five.

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