has discovered an industrial-grade problem affecting the fuselage panels of several dozen A320 family aircraft, industry sources said Monday in .
The suspected manufacturing defect is delaying some deliveries, but , said the sources, who asked not to be named. At the same time, Airbus did not make any immediate comment.
Where does the problem come from?
The origin of the problem could not be determined. It came as Airbus ramps up its efforts to meet demanding delivery targets for the year and has also been distracted by the .
A person with direct knowledge of the matter told Reuters that some deliveries have already been affected, but there was no immediate confirmation of how many or for how long.
Industry sources told the news agency the planemaker delivered 72 aircraft in November, fewer than many analysts had previously expected, bringing the total for the year so far to 657.
It is targeting “around 820” deliveries for the year, meaning it should reach a record throughput of more than 160 aircraft in December. The record for the last month of the year was 138 in 2019.
How is the Airbus A320 market affected?
Analysts were divided on whether the world’s largest plane maker would meet delivery targets, which determine revenue and cash flow, as airlines pay much of a plane’s value at delivery.
Jefferies analyst Chloe Lemarie, who tracks aircraft deliveries and forecasts 71 deliveries for November, noted that the month’s performance was weaker than expected.
The target remains achievable, however, as underlying production rises, he added in a note to investors issued before the reported quality issue was announced.
Independent aviation analyst Rob Morris told Reuters that Airbus could reach around 800 deliveries – which others say could be enough to claim victory based on the wording of its forecast – but with some risk that the bottom line would be “marginally lower”.
