Surface damage seen on Qatar Airways' airbus A350 parked at Qatar airways aircraft maintenance hangar in Doha
Surface damage seen on Qatar Airways' airbus A350 parked at Qatar airways aircraft maintenance hangar in DohaREUTERS/Imad Creidi
  • The airlines are fighting over paint issues on the A350 jets.

  • The damage poses a safety risk, but the paint issue is onlycosmetic.

  • Two of the grounded A350s were given to the reporters to see the damage.

A months-long legal dispute has arisen between the European plane manufacturer and the European plane manufacturer.

Qatar Airways A350.
Qatar Airways A350.Jaromir Chalabala/Shutterstock

The A350 paint issues have been raised by airlines around the world, and now they are looking for $600 million in damages from the planemaker.

Insider was told in January that cracked paint and exposed copper mesh on the planes pose a safety risk.

Cracked paint on Qatar A350.
An undated image shows what appears to be paint peeling, cracking and exposed expanded copper foil (ECF) on the fuselage of a Qatar Airways Airbus A350 aircraft.Reuters

The source is Insider.

The plane is not unairworthy due to the redundant safety systems built into the jet, according to the company.

Qatar paint issues on A350.
An undated image shows what appears to be paint peeling, cracking and blistering on the top of the fuselage of a Qatar Airways Airbus A350 aircraft.Reuters

This is the source of the news.

The European Aviation Safety Agency supports the claim that degraded paint does not affect airworthiness.

EASA.
Tobias Arhelger/Shutterstock.com

The source is Insider.

The airline says the planemaker has yet to do a root cause analysis of the problem, despite the manufacturer's safety assurance.

Qatar A350.
Qatar A350.Soos Jozsef/Shutterstock

The source is Insider.

The airline grounded 20 A350s in August 2021. 23 jets have been taken out of service by the state of qatar.

Qatar's grounded A350.
One of Qatar's grounded A350 jets.REUTERS/Imad Creidi

There are surface paint issues on the A350s of other airlines. The airlines say the issue is not a safety threat and will keep flying.

Etihad Airways Airbus A350-1000 XWB — Dubai Airshow 2021
An Etihad Airways Airbus A350-1000 XWB nicknamed the "Sustainable Fifty" at the Dubai Airshow 2021Thomas Pallini/Insider

The source is Insider.

Airbus told Insider that it has already determined a root cause and provided necessary guidance to its customers and operators.

The source is Insider.

A threat to the international protocols on safety matters is represented by the attempt by this customer to misrepresent this specific topic.

An Airbus A350 flying over Bogota.Airbus

The source is Insider.

In a London High Court in December, a lawsuit was filed against Airbus for $618 million in damages and an additional $4 million for every day the planes are out of commission.

A grounded Qatar A350 seen by Reuters journalists.REUTERS/Imad Creidi

The source is Insider.

The London trial will take place in the summer of next year, but a UK judge ruled in favor of Air India in the dispute, according to the news agency.

An Air India 787, which competes with the A350.Vytautas Kielaitis/Shutterstock

The source is Insider.

The counter-sued hopes to recover millions of dollars of credits that are given when jets are ordered. The cancellation of the order for 50 A321 aircraft and two A350-1000 jets further fueled tensions.

Qatar A321.Art Konovalov/Shutterstock.com

The dispute between the two companies has intensified, as evidenced by the cancellation of the order for 50 A321 jets byQatar Airways.

In response to the canceled orders, the country posted a video on the internet showing the degraded paint.

Screenshot of surface paint issues on Qatar's A350 aircraft from a full video showing the defects.Qatar Airways

The dispute between the two companies has led to the cancellation of an order for 2 A350 jets fromQatar.

Two of the grounded A350s are in the airline's maintenance hangar. The planes were given to the news agency recently.

This is the source of the news.

Journalists reported blisters and cracked paint along the roof or crown of the jets.

Surface damage seen on Qatar Airways' airbus A350 parked at Qatar airways aircraft maintenance hangar in Doha.REUTERS/Imad Creidi

This is the source of the news.

They say that the lightning mesh on the wingtips was exposed and that it was missing from other parts.

Surface damage seen on Qatar Airways' airbus A350 parked at Qatar airways aircraft maintenance hangar in Doha.REUTERS/Imad Creidi

This is the source of the news.

The main wings had "rivet rash" and the tail of one of the jets had cracked and missing paint.

Surface damage seen on Qatar Airways' airbus A350 parked at Qatar airways aircraft maintenance hangar in Doha.REUTERS/Imad Creidi

This is the source of the news.

It has not verified the cause of the damage, after looking at court documents.

Surface damage seen on Qatar Airways' airbus A350 parked at Qatar airways aircraft maintenance hangar in Doha.REUTERS/Imad Creidi

This is the source of the news.

The two are still at odds according to Al Baker.

Qatar Airways CEO Akbar Al Baker poses near an Airbus A350-900 aircraft.ERIC CABANIS/AFP via Getty Images)

This is the source of the news.

He told a news conference that when it came to an issue with his company, it was a different story. We wouldn't have to wait for a trial next year if things were resolved.

Surface damage seen on Qatar Airways' airbus A350 parked at Qatar airways aircraft maintenance hangar in Doha.REUTERS/Imad Creidi

This is the source of the news.

Faury said there was progress in communicating.

Airbus CEO Guillaume Faury.Morris MacMatzen/Getty Images

This is the source of the news.

Business Insider has an article on it.