European commercial jet maker Airbus Industrie said today it is not planning large layoffs depite the crisis gripping the airline industry after attacks in the United States.
Chief commercial officer Mr John Leahy said today the European aircraft maker would likely avoid the kind of layoffs made by rival Boeing.
Boeing announced last week it was cutting 20,000-30,000 jobs as airlines delay deliveries and cancel orders. The head of Boeing's commercial jet unit said he expected Airbus would also face pressure to cut jobs.
Although Airbus had planned to increase deliveries to about 400-450 planes a year by 2003, Mr Leahy said it had not yet hired the extra staff and thus had a leaner operation.
Mr Leahy said Airbus has been delivering about 300 jets a year. He forecast deliveries would be in the 320-330 range for the current year.
He also told an aviation finance conference in Hong Kong that Airbus's plans to roll out its A380 super jumbo carrier would go ahead on schedule, despite reports Lufthansa has postponed a decision on purchasing 15 of the jets.
"The order book is pretty strong, development is on track, and there are no delays or attempts by anyone to push back their orders," Mr Leahy said of the A380.