Airbus SAS pushed back planned entry into service of its A350 aircraft by as much as six months as some parts arrive late, marking a setback in the planemaker's effort to challenge Boeing Co.'s dominance in wide-body jets.

Assembly of the aircraft will start in the first quarter of next year, rather than late in 2011, Airbus parent European Aeronautic, Defence & Space Co. said today, as it reported earnings that beat estimates. First delivery is set for the first half of 2014 instead of the end of 2013. The delays will lead to a charge of EUR200 million (US$271 million), EADS said.

The delay is the second push-back on the A350, as the company moves along more cautiously to avoid the mistakes of its A380 double-decker program that was years behind schedule. Airbus is struggling to manage hundreds of suppliers and new composite technologies that also stymied Boeing's development of its 787 Dreamliner, which entered commercial service last month, more than three years later than planned.

"We've not yet flown the aircraft," EADS Chief Financial Officer Hans Peter Ring told journalists on a call today. "We have a lot of years to go before ramp up so this is what we know today."

Ring announced the delay as EADS reported net income advanced to EUR312 million, or 38 cents a share, from EUR13 million, or 2 cents, a year earlier. Analysts surveyed by Bloomberg had estimated a loss of EUR30 million. Sales dropped 4 percent to EUR10.75 billion.

Rising Stock

EADS rose as much as EUR1.29, or 6.5 percent, to EUR21.26, and traded at EUR21.15 as of 9:40 a.m., the biggest gain since Sep. 7. The shares have advanced 22 percent this year.

Qatar Airways Ltd., the biggest customer for the A350, which 80 on order, is also the first airline scheduled to get the plane. Ring said the charge is mainly attributable to payments for loss-making airline contracts. He declined to identify individual customers.

On the A380, the world's largest passenger aircraft, Airbus shipped many parts to the final assembly line in Toulouse in France before they were ready to be pieced together. This time around, Airbus will use a "stop-and-fix policy," Ring said, which lets it address difficulties as they occur rather than letting them pile up.

EADS today lifted its guidance for revenue, orders and operating profit before some items, saying profit before one- time items will reach about EUR1.45 billion this year. Airbus will deliver as many as 530 aircraft, and book gross orders of about 1,500 units, EADS said.

"I am confident the commercial aircraft market combined with our strong backlog will sustain our growth in the years to come," EADS Chief Executive Officer Louis Gallois said in the release.

Airbus, the source of two-thirds of EADS sales, has delivered 418 aircraft so far this year until the end of October. The backlog for the A350 includes 75 for the A350-1000 and 373 for the A35-900, slated for end-of-2013 entry into service. The smallest, 250-seat A350-800 variant, which passengers have been moving away from to switch to larger models, has 119 orders.