'It obviously delays expansion plans and affects potential future revenue,' a company spokesperson said.
'We have to talk to Airbus about it. We have an agreement and each side has certain obligations. If there is a delay from their side there are penalties which they have to pay, and vice versa if the delay is from our side.'
The Middle Eastern carrier has placed the largest single order for the new airliner, planning to take up to 43 aircraft. The double-decker plane is designed to carry 555-840 passengers.
Emirates was scheduled to take delivery of its first A380 in April 2007, but that will not happen until October 2007 at the earliest after the European aircraft manufacturer told clients on Tuesday that deliveries would be delayed again by six to seven months because of production problems.
It was the second such delay announced by Airbus, which is 80 pct owned by the European Aeronautic Defense and Space Company and 20 pct by Britain's BAE Systems.
Emirates president Tim Clark had said in December that a delay of six to 12 months would pose a serious problem for the government-controlled company, because it would set back plans for the carrier's growth.
The government is sinking tens of billions of dollars into enlarging the Emirates fleet, expanding the city state's main airport and building another on Dubai's outskirts in Jebel Ali.
In November 2005, Emirates also announced a new order of 42 Boeing 777s at a total cost of 9.7 bln usd.
The company is one of the world's fastest growing airlines. It posted net profits of 708 mln usd for the financial year ended March 31, 2005 -- 49 pct up on the previous year.
Dubai is forecasting that 76 million passengers will travel through its airports by 2009 and that traffic will grow by 14 to 20 pct a year.
In 2005, 5.4 mln tourists visited Dubai, and the authorities aim to triple this number by 2010. newsdesk@afxnews.com afp/jfr COPYRIGHT Copyright AFX News Limited 2005. All rights reserved. The copying, republication or redistribution of AFX News Content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of AFX News. AFX News and AFX Financial News Logo are registered trademarks of AFX News Limited
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