Stelios attacks easyJet's Airbus decision

Hostilities have again broken out between Sir Stelios Haji-Ioannou and easyJet as the conflict between the airline's largest shareholder and its board erupted over a $1.1bn (£680m) aircraft order. Stelios, whose family speaks for about 38% of the carrier, gave a cautious reception to the order of 15 Airbus A320 aircraft when it was announced in January, but has now revisited the deal. In an 11-page letter to easyJet's chairman, Sir Michael Rake, he said the board should have sought shareholder approval for the order and investors should vote before any further payments are made to Airbus. He added that the catalogue price for an A320, at $85m, was substantially higher than the $51m cited in an easyJet document in 2006. An easyJet spokesman said: "The commercial value of the deal reflected substantially less than the current Airbus list prices for the aircraft." Andrew Lobbenberg, analyst at Royal Bank of Scotland, said: "Stelios is re-emphasising his position in the ongoing debate about medium-term growth and cash returns, looking to head off a further aircraft order and to secure more cash returns for shareholders." Haji-Ioannou has been locked in an on-off dispute with the easyJet board since a brand dispute erupted in 2008. The branding row has since been resolved.