The corona pandemic hits the aviation industry enormously. Airlines save everywhere - this also has consequences for the major aircraft manufacturers.
Toulouse (dpa) - The aerospace and defense group Airbus is reducing the production of passenger aircraft by around a third due to the corona pandemic.
The group is thus reacting to the violent effects of the corona crisis on customers, said the European rival of the US group Boeing in Toulouse. The effects of the pandemic are unprecedented, said Airbus CEO Guillaume Faury. Airlines are badly hit by the crisis.
For this reason, only six new aircraft per month from the latest Airbus A350 long-range jet are to leave the factory halls for the time being. The production of the modernized A330neo wide-body jet is cut on two planes per month.
Only 40 units of the medium-range jets of the A320 and A320neo model family are to be built each month. Here, the Airbus management had actually wanted to expand production to 63 aircraft from 2021 and had aimed for further increases in the following years. A few weeks ago, Faury said that production in the segment was fully booked by 2025.
Airbus is now trying to hold the money together and, according to its own statements, is talking to the employee representatives about how the consequences of the cut in production can be cushioned socially. Management is also targeting long-term cost reductions.
In March, Airbus held up comparatively well despite the crisis. Despite interruptions in production, the group delivered a total of 36 commercial aircraft. At the same time, he brought in 21 new orders. Cancellations have already been deducted. In the first quarter, the manufacturer had 122 deliveries and 290 net orders.
However, the management board canceled its plan announced in February to deliver 880 commercial aircraft in the current year and to increase its operating profit. In order for the group to survive the crisis, shareholders should forego the dividend for 2019. Airbus also secured an additional line of credit of more than 15 billion euros in March.
Because global air traffic has plummeted as a result of the corona pandemic and the associated restrictions. The airlines that have filled Airbus and Boeing order books are facing what may be the worst crisis in their history. At Lufthansa and its subsidiaries, around 700 of the 763 aircraft are on the ground. It was only on Tuesday that the Kranich Group decided to reduce its fleet by around ten percent.
Many airlines face bankruptcy without state aid. The World Aviation Association IATA has already called on governments around the world to help the companies concerned with financial injections, guarantees and other relief. Lufthansa is also talking to the federal government about aid worth billions.
