AFP
European plane maker Airbus said Thursday it increased aircraft deliveries to 766 as the company still struggles to return to pre-pandemic production levels.
The figure was higher than the 735 aircraft Airbus delivered to clients in 2023, but less than the 800 planes it initially hoped to shift in 2024.
“Given the complex and fast-changing environment we continue to operate in, we consider 2024 a good year,” said the head of Airbus’s commercial aircraft division, Christian Scherer.
Airbus and Boeing chopped production during the Covid crisis that started in 2019, as airlines stopped taking deliveries of planes.
They have had trouble scaling production back up as suppliers have struggled to replace staff they shed during the downturn.
Airbus was able to step up production at the end of the year, with engine manufacturer Safran saying it had given Airbus priority over airlines replacing engines.
Deliveries figures are an important indicator for the industry as airlines pay for aircraft when they take possession.
Airbus is set to release its 2024 financial performance report on February 20.
Scherer noted “sustained demand for new aircraft” last year, with Airbus registering 826 net orders.
That is far however from the record 2,094 it racked up in 2023.
Its order book of 8,658 aircraft is the equivalent of 10 years of work at its current pace of production.
