Australian airline Qantas Airways said Friday it was canceling an order for 15 Dreamliner 787 jets, Boeing's long-delayed, wide-body aircraft. The airline also said it would put off delivery of 15 other 787 Dreamliners for four years, The New York Times reported Friday. A cancellation of 15 jets would save the company $3 billion, Qantas said. Qantas is still represents Boeing's largest customer for the more-fuel efficient aircraft, with 50 other jets on order. Chief Executive Officer Alan Joyce said the cancellation was an economic decision, not based on the latest delay of the aircraft's first test flight, which Boeing announced earlier this week. “Qantas announced its original B787 order in December 2005, and the operating environment for the world's airlines has clearly changed dramatically since then,” Joyce said. That explanation, however, does not bode well for Boeing, as many other airlines are suffering from falling revenue and could follow suit with canceled or delayed orders. “For Qantas to pull or defer deliveries is a major, major step,” said industry analyst Derek Sadubin, at the Center for Asia Pacific Aviation, an Australian consulting company. of 2010. Qantas said it would retain orders for 50 of the new aircraft, including 15 for its low-cost subsidiary, Jetstar. A spokesman for Qantas, Simon Rushton, declined to comment on whether the airline would pay a penalty for the cancellation. Analysts said the Australian flag carrier's cancellation was one of the most significant such announcements to date, even in an industry that has already undergone major cost cuts and shake-ups. “For Qantas to pull or defer deliveries is a major, major step,” said Derek Sadubin, an analyst at the Center for Asia Pacific Aviation, a consulting company in Sydney. The Qantas decision takes the number of cancellations for the 787 from airlines around the world so far this year to 73, or about 8 percent of total orders for the aircraft, Sadubin said, adding that more cancellations - of aircraft of all types and makes - are probable. Qantas announced its original B787 order in December 2005.
