Airbus should lower the price of its A380 jetliner if it wants to sell more of them, IAG CEO Willie Walsh said Friday, adding that the airline group would consider additional aircraft if the price was right. Walsh’s comments come as Dubai’s Emirates is exploring switching A380 orders to smaller aircraft in a move that raises doubts about the future of the superjumbo, people familiar with the matter said on Thursday. “I’ve been very clear with Airbus that if they want to sell the aircraft, they’re going to have to be very aggressive on the price,” Walsh said. Airbus is trying to broker a deal for Emirates, the largest customer, to switch some A380 that are already on order to the smaller A350 in a move likely to trigger a shutdown in production of the slow-selling superjumbo, sources said Thursday. That would be part of a broader package to end an impasse between Emirates and Rolls Royce over terms for engine support and could involve salvaging as many sales as possible to a handful of airlines still interested in buying the plane. Industry sources say Airbus is in talks with BA on the A380. Walsh said that IAG was in talks with Airbus and Boeing to get more wide-body aircraft to replace 747s that are due to be retired in the coming years. “Those discussions are ongoing... and we’re pleased to have the choice of excellent aircraft,” Walsh said. IAG’s BA currently operates 12 A380s. Walsh said he was committed to the A380s which the group already operates, and that IAG might consider some additional aircraft if the price was right.<br/>
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A Japan Airlines jet carrying 201 passengers and crew skidded off an icy taxiway after landing at Tokyo’s Narita airport on Friday, forcing the temporary closure of one runway. The Boeing 787 flying from the Indian capital New Delhi lost control of its left main landing gear while taxiing to the arrival gate, the airport said. There were no injuries. TV Tokyo showed footage of the stranded aircraft with one set of wheels on snow-covered ground next to the taxiway.<br/>
BA is refusing to offer pilots and other staff a new three-year salary package, citing an uncertain post-Brexit outlook in proposing a 12-month agreement instead. “We can agree a one-year pay deal,” the IAG SA-owned airline said in a letter to unions. “This gives certainty over pay for colleagues in what is anticipated to be an uncertain year given the current trading conditions.” The proposal, which includes a below-inflation 2.3% pay increase, comes as businesses across Europe brace for the UK’s withdrawal from the European Union on March 29 and a lack of clarity over any economic fallout. With time running out and no divorce deal reached, companies are making contingency plans from stockpiling goods to rescheduling production lines. "We are working closely with our unions to take a positive approach towards our ongoing pay talks,” BA said. The letter provides insight into BA’s outlook for the coming year as the aviation industry tries to understand what the UK’s pending exit from the EU will mean for demand, regulation and ownership restrictions. Plans to avoid a halt to international flights to and from the country have already been laid out, but uncertainty persists about Brexit’s wider economic impact. BA’s pilots, who took a pay cut during the financial crisis of a decade ago to help the carrier navigate the economic downturn, are frustrated that rising profit under IAG hasn’t fed into salaries, according to a letter from three unions in response to the airline.<br/>