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Bloomberg
Airbus SE delivered 49 new jets to its customers last month, overcoming travel restrictions and virus-afflicted demand to post its third straight monthly increase.
The July tally, achieved solely with narrow-body aircraft, marked a 36% increase from the 36 handovers recorded in June, according to a statement. Airbus registered four new orders during the month and had no cancellations — an improvement from the prior month, which saw a negative order balance.
Deliveries were boosted by a system that delegates some essential customer checks to the manufacturer’s own engineers, people familiar with the matter said earlier, asking for anonymity discussing data that hadn’t yet been made public.
The so-called e-delivery option “continues to facilitate our ability to deliver aircraft during an unprecedented time of travel restrictions and quarantines,†said Stefan Schaffrath, an Airbus spokesman.
Maintaining jetliner handovers to those customers that still want them is vital for Airbus as it seeks to bolster cash flow, since the biggest payment for planes comes when the buyer receives them. The Toulouse, France-based company had 145 aircraft undelivered as of June 30.
The company shipped 47 of its best-selling A320-series narrow-bodies, as well as two of the smaller A220 series in July. Customers taking delivery included Air Canada, Egypt Air and India’s Vistara.
Through July, the European manufacturer had racked up 245 deliveries this year. US rival Boeing Co, which had to contend with the continued grounding of its 737 Max following two fatal crashes, had logged 70 deliveries as of June 30. It reports July figures next Tuesday.
While Airbus is outpacing Boeing, the number of shipments is still depressed amid an unprecedented global slowdown in air travel.
Total deliveries through
July were down 46% from a year earlier, when Airbus factories were straining to meet demand.
Chief Financial Officer Dominik Asam said on an earnings call last week that deliveries should align with production this quarter.