Airbus announces plans to boost production levels, increasing pressure on rival Boeing

Airbus has announced that it is boosting production of two of its models, bringing their manufacturing to almost pre-pandemic levels. On Thursday, the company announced that it would produce nine A350 flagship wide body planes monthly by the end of 2025 from the six it does currently. This brings the flight’s manufacturing levels to just below the pre-pandemic rate of 10 planes monthly. Airbus also stated that it would increase the production of its A330neo jets from three to four next year. The move to increase manufacturing of Airbus’ biggest jet comes as bookings of longer-haul, international flights increase. Airbus is hoping to capitalise on the increasing demand in air travel. Before its annual earnings report, the company also announced Thomas Toepfer, the present chief financial officer of German polyester manufacturer Covestro AG, as its new CFO. Toepfer will assume the post from 1 September, according to a Wall Street Journal report. The company’s shares jumped in the share market after the news. The airline manufacturer has also boosted its dividend 20 percent to €1.80 a share. Airbus recently signed a new record deal with Air India, which includes 40 Airbus A350s. Airbus has also been trying to ramp-up production of its narrow-body line models to lift the output of its popular A320neo family of jets to 75  monthly—higher than manufacturing levels before the COVID pandemic—and extend its market-share lead over the 737 MAX by Boeing. Airbus has postponed its plans and targets this rate by 2026 now. The company’s ambitious plans to boost its production levels has put more pressure on its rival Boeing. Boeing has faced setbacks as it pushed back its plans to boost production of its bestselling model- the 787 Dreamliner. The company’s goal of producing five Dreamliners monthly has been rescheduled to the back end of the year, as per CFO Brian West. Boeing had to halt deliveries of its 787 models for almost two years due to a number of regulatory and manufacturing issues. It got the sign off for the model from the Federal Aviation Administration in July and has been working to recover production levels since then. Another problem that the company faces is its 777X model, which is running years behind its development schedule. The plane is the biggest commercial airline available for order in the world. The moves by Airbus and Boeing come amidst their struggles with overstretched supply chains and delayed deliveries in the wake of the pandemic. “The situation has been quite frustrating,” Airbus chief executive Guillaume Faury said on a call with analysts, as quoted by Wall Street Journal. “It will take us two years to achieve what we wanted to do in one.” Read all the Latest News , Trending News , Cricket News , Bollywood News , India News and Entertainment News here. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.