(Adds detail, Airbus comment)
OSLO, April 21 (Reuters) - Airbus has delayeddeliveries of its revamped A320neo jet by two to three monthsfor additional tests of the Pratt & Whitney engines, the chiefexecutive of budget carrier Norwegian Air said onThursday.
Industry sources told Reuters in February the plane-makerhad told some airlines the A320neo delivery schedule had beenpushed back by about two months.
"The A320 neo has some teething issues but we are workingwith Pratt & Whitney to solve the problems," an Airbusspokeswoman said on Thursday. "We are in constant discussionwith our customers and we expect the problems to be solved bymid-year."
Norwegian, Europe's third-biggest low-cost airline by marketcapitalisation after Ryanair and EasyJet, has100 of the new plane model on order and is scheduled to receivethe 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 Bjoern Kjos told Reuters on thesidelines of an earnings conference.
"The entire output is being delayed," he added.
Industry sources have pointed to delays in deliveries of thenewly-developed Geared Turbofan engine from Pratt & Whitney, asubsidiary of United Technologies, as the cause of theproblems.
On April 19, industry sources said more than two dozenA320neo jets without engines were crowding Airbus parking spacesand hampering its cash flow.
Despite its rapid growth, Norwegian Air so far relies purelyon Boeing aircraft for its own operations, while leasing outAirbus planes to other companies.
Most of Norwegian's expansion is now taking place inlong-haul, where it uses Boeing 787 Dreamliners to win marketshare on transatlantic routes and has promised one-way ticketprices as low as $69 for flights from the United States toEurope.
Kjos said on Thursday the company could buy another 10Dreamliners on top of the 40 it already has in operation andunder delivery.
Norwegian on Thursday reported net earnings below forecastfor the first quarter, while global oil prices extended a recentrise, sending the Oslo-listed company's shares down four percentby 0840 GMT. (Reporting by Joachim Dagenborg, writing by Terje Solsvik,editing by Gwladys Fouche/Ruth Pitchford)
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