Spokeswoman Valerie Tan said officials at the Dubai-based airline were discussing whether to go forward with the order.

"Things are up in the air right now. It's hard for us to say. We had such a big order," Tan said by telephone Thursday. "We haven't really been officially informed (of the possible delay). There's no letter yet. There's no official discussion."

Earlier Thursday, Emirates airlines released a statement saying it had not yet had discussions with Airbus on a new delivery schedule and had no plans to withdraw its long-standing order.

European Aeronautic Defense & Space Co., the parent company of Airbus, said Thursday that it expects further delays in its troubled Airbus A380 program.

The 555-seat airplane has a list price of $300 million, valuing Emirates' order at roughly $13.5 billion.

Emirates' A380 order includes 43 planes being purchased from Airbus as well as two from a separate leasing company, Tan said.

EADS said it had found "challenges with the wiring" of its aircraft and had not prepared a final delivery schedule or calculated financial impacts of the delays. The company said it would provide more details on the delays and remedies in four weeks.

"Consequently, from what is known today, there will be further delays," EADS said in a prepared release.