Airbus Is Said to Be in Talks With British Airways on More A380s

Airbus SE is in talks to sell new A380 superjumbo planes to British Airways this year after securing a program-saving deal with Emirates, according to people familiar with the matter.

The U.K. carrier, a unit of IAG SA, has said in the past that it was looking for six to seven second-hand A380s. Instead, it’s looking at new ones, said the people, who asked not to be named because the discussions are private. Refurbishing used models of the 500-seat behemoth for BA’s needs is too expensive, one of the people said.

John Leahy, Airbus’s outgoing head of sales, said on Bloomberg Television Friday that he was confident the European planemaker would secure one more A380 order this year. That customer is British Airways, the people said. The carrier has 12 A380s in its fleet, and is the biggest operator of Boeing Co.’s 747 jumbo.

Airbus, based in Toulouse France, and IAG declined to comment.