Supply Chain Improvements Bolster Airbus Deliveries, Outlook

Deeper involvement with suppliers is helping Airbus address supply chain constraints pressuring aircraft production and delivery targets, the company’s top commercial executive said following a record-breaking month for deliveries.

“We’ve been able to make really meaningful progress,” commercial aircraft CEO Christian Scherer said at a Jan. 9 briefing that included release of key full-year 2024 figures. “I think we can claim that very forcefully.”

In 2024, the manufacturer delivered 766 aircraft to 86 customers, below a stated target of 770 but within a range it previously said would mark success, and 4% above its full year 2023 total.

Airbus closed the year with a monthly record 123 aircraft deliveries in December 2024.

Scherer called the result a “very good achievement,” given the complex operating environment, seeing good progress on its longer-term production trajectory.

“We see that our deliveries and more importantly our industrial output—our industry flow—has been increasing year-over-year,” he noted. “We are not increasing production as far as our customers would like ... but if you step back, you see that together with our partners in the supply chain at large we have shown a lot of strength. I will dare say, Airbus has shown leadership and pulled the industry up.”

Reiterating production rate targets of 75 aircraft per month for the A320neo family by 2027, 12 on the A350 by 2028, 14 on the A220 by 2026, and four for the A330, Airbus is optimistic on timing for a return to pre-pandemic peak delivery numbers. Airbus delivered 863 commercial aircraft in 2019.

“We will surpass the 2019 number in the foreseeable future,” Scherer said.

On meeting its lofty A320neo program ambitions, “there’s still a lot of work to be done, some weak links we have to strengthen, some headwinds we have to sail with and tack with, but I see no reason that that goal of reaching 75 ... in 2027 is unrealistic,” he added.

In 2024, the aircraft manufacturer stepped up its involvement with partners, in a strategy that saw it shift from transactional to an operational level. In addition, a “vast majority” of Airbus suppliers have made changes needed to deliver on planned ramp-ups, added Scherer, noting that Airbus is taking action to address a few persisting issues. Remaining challenges include Spirit AeroSystems, as well as cabin equipment, engines, galleys and seats.

“Admittedly, detailed parts more on the aerostructures sides remain weak links in the chain,” Scherer said. But Airbus has “reaped the benefits” of industrial investments and investments in resources, allowing the OEM to respond to growing demand for the A321, currently representing a good two-thirds of its single-aisle backlog. In 2024, the A321 reached a new production record, Airbus having produced and delivered 361 in 2024, a nearly 15% increase over 2023.

“This figure is going to keep growing with the integration now, the traction we’re getting on the XLR that has come online,” Scherer said. Airbus’ eight A320 family assembly lines are now all A321 capable, a number growing to 10 by 2026 with one additional final assembly line in the U.S. and one in Asia.

In 2024, Airbus recorded 878 gross and 826 net orders, representing a book-to-bill ratio slightly above one, with gross orders for 17 A220s, 637 A320neo family aircraft, 82 A330s, and 142 A350s. In December 2024, Airbus added 99 new orders, including from Air Canada for five A220s, three A330neos from Air Algerie, three ACJ320s for Royal Jets in the UAE, and orders from undisclosed customers for two A220s, 85 A320 family aircraft and one A350-900.

The A220 orders were less than anticipated, replacing a subdued market segment after a strong 2023, Airbus also cited Pratt & Whitney engine durability issues as contributing to market doubt. A decision on a stretched variant will partially hinge on improvement in that space.

Pratt & Whitney have a plan to improve the engine “that we’re satisfied with,” Scherer said. “That needs to happen—and once that’s happened and the engine has potential, then the stretch continues to be a question of when, not if.”

December’s cancellations totaled 15—13 A320neos by Viva Air and two A350-1000s by Air Algerie.

Deliveries in 2024 comprised 75 A220s, 602 A320 family, 32 A330s, and 57 A350s. Airbus was bullish on its progress and outlook for the year ahead. “The delivery numbers themselves actually hide an even better performance on the industrial side,” Scherer told reporters. “In terms of industrial output, there was a significantly higher production increase, which doesn’t meet the eye. In 2023 we delivered ... quite a bit of existing inventory.”

Overall, it sees 2024 as a year of success that gives cause for optimism.

“The issues that we were facing were mainly driven by the supply chain; We tackled them one after another, resolved them and met our target,” Scherer said. “Are we out of the woods? As I mentioned before, absolutely not. This remains a very difficult environment,” he said, citing geopolitics and persisting weak links in the supply chain, “but I am confident that we are on the ramp that we’re planning, and that we will see continuous improvement and climb rate in 2025.”

Airbus will report fiscal 2024 earnings on Feb. 20.