Airbus: Aircraft Contracts, Discounts & Penalties

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Do you have an idea of how different those prices are? For example, there was news last week about an airline from New Guinea buying five airplanes. How does that compare to Delta? Does the smaller airline get no discount versus the list price, while the larger one gets a 50% discount? I'm trying to understand the differences and the stepping stones for different volume levels.

There's no straightforward answer. For a deal like the one signed last week, they might have received a 20% to 25% discount. If American Airlines orders 200 airplanes, the discount could be between 40% and 50%.

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How do you assess what people are prepared to pay for the plane? Is it based on the leasing rates? Is that the best metric to look at?

Leasing rates are one element, but about 35% to 40% of Airbus single-aisle deliveries are to leasing companies, which is a very large market. They usually order large numbers of airplanes and then find customers to lease them to. The finance people in that sector have a good understanding of leasing rates, which fluctuate like everything else. It depends on how the deal is structured. It's a negotiation game. If we really want a customer because it's a strategic campaign, we might offer a price reduction. Conversely, if a customer is not considered strategic, we might be less inclined to offer the same terms.

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