The European planemaker is moving to a rate of 12 A350 jets a month by 2028, superseding previous plans to reach 10 by 2026, it said as it reported figures for the first quarter. Earnings before interest and tax reached €577 million ($619 million), missing the €814 million forecast by analysts in a Bloomberg survey, amid higher costs.
The company had a free cash outflow of €1.79 billion because of higher inventory created in preparation for increased production, as well as an aggressive hiring spree. Revenue rose to €12.8 billion, and the company reiterated its guidance issued in February.
Airbus has enjoyed a smoother start to the year than Boeing, which has been mired in crisis following a near-catastrophic accident early in January. As a result, the US planemaker has taken up much of the public attention in the global planemaking duopoly, while Airbus has quietly pressed its advantage, picking off orders from Boeing loyalists clamoring for more planes.
Still, Airbus continues to struggle with a supply chain that remains constrained, at a time when the manufacturer is ramping up production to satisfy soaring demand. The company still expects to deliver 800 planes in 2024, while Boeing remains under fire from regulators, lawmakers and customers over its manufacturing quality in the wake of the fuselage blowout on a 737 Max 9 on Jan. 5.
“We delivered first quarter 2024 results against the backdrop of an operating environment that shows no sign of improvement,” Airbus Chief Executive Officer Guillaume Faury said in the statement. “Geopolitical and supply chain tensions continue.”The higher rate on the A350 underscores the diverging fortunes between the two companies. In contrast to Airbus, Boeing has been forced to slow down production as regulators demand the company improve its factory processes. The European planemaker has seen healthy demand for its A350 jet, which competes with Boeing’s 787 Dreamliner and the yet-to-be certified 777-9 model. Earlier on Thursday, Indian budget specialist IndiGo said it signed a firm order for 30 A350-900 aircraft, with an option for as many as 70 more.
Airbus said the ramp-up for its smaller A220 model continues toward a monthly rate of 14 aircraft in 2026, and that the A320 program is progressing toward 75 aircraft a month in 2026, with the long-range A321XLR expected to enter service in the third quarter of this year.
On Wednesday, Boeing said it had burnt through $3.9 billion in the first quarter, ending the first three months with $7.5 billion in cash and short-term securities, down from $16 billion at the start of the year. Airbus has gained about 14% so far this year, while Boeing is down 38%, hitting its lowest point in more than a year.
Faury said earlier this week that he has received requests from airlines that traditionally ordered Boeing planes, but that the European company is unable to meet that demand as it is sold out of its best-selling A321neo jet well into the next decade.
