Airbus A320neos Delayed 2-3 Months - Norwegian

Airbus has delayed deliveries of the A320neo by two to three months for additional tests of its Pratt & Whitney engines, the chief executive of Norwegian Air said.

"The A320neo has some teething issues but we are working with Pratt & Whitney to solve the problems," an Airbus spokeswoman said. "We are in constant discussion with our customers and we expect the problems to be solved by mid-year."

Norwegian has 100 of the new aircraft on order and is scheduled to receive the first four in 2016 and eight more in 2017.

"The engines on the new neo planes require some more tests. It's always like that when new aircraft are being introduced," Norwegian Air chief executive Bjorn Kjos said. "The entire output is being delayed".

Norwegian Air currently flies a fleet of Boeing aircraft for its own operations, while leasing out Airbus planes to other companies.

Most of Norwegian's expansion is now taking place in long-haul, where it uses Boeing 787 Dreamliners on transatlantic routes and has promised one-way ticket prices of USD$69 for flights between the US and Europe.

Kjos said Norwegian could order another 10 787s on top of the 40 it already has in operation and awaiting delivery.