The Paris Air Show in 2023 was an undeniable success for Airbus with more that 800 orders for aircraft agreed, and the eye-watering figures have given the plane manufacturer reason to feel positive about the future as its half-yearly financial figures were released.
In its report published on July 26, 2023, Airbus confirmed that its orders, after cancellation, stood at 1,044 aircraft, while last year at the same time only 259 aircraft were agreed.
IndiGo set the stage at this year’s Paris Air Show by placing a remarkable order for 500 Airbus A320-family aircraft.
While Air India purchased 140 A320neo and 70 A321neo single-aisle planes, along with 34 A350-1000 and six A350-900 wide-body jets.
“During the first half of 2023 we progressed well across our businesses in an operational environment that remains complex. Our commercial aircraft are in strong demand, as demonstrated by more than 800 orders announced at the Paris Air Show. This demand is driven both by growth and fleet replacement as airlines invest in more fuel-efficient fleets,” said Guillaume Faury, Airbus CEO. “Based on this H1 performance, we maintain our 2023 guidance.”
At the end of June 2023, the order backlog at Airbus amounted to a record 7,967 commercial aircraft
Additionally, Airbus Helicopters registered 131 net orders (H1 2022: 163 units) which were well spread across programs and included 19 H160s.
Airbus Defence and Space’s order intake by value in the first six months of 2023 was €6.0 billion ($6.6 billion) while over the same period in 2022 the value was €6.5 billion ($7.2 billion).
These new figures include four new-build and five converted A330 Multi Role Tanker Transport aircraft for Canada.
Consolidated revenues increased 11% year-on-year to €27.7 billion ($30.8 billion).
A total of 316 commercial aircraft were delivered (H1 2022: 297 aircraft), comprising 25 A220s, 256 A320 Family, 14 A330s and 21 A350s. Revenues generated by Airbus’ commercial aircraft activities increased 16 percent, mainly reflecting the higher number of deliveries.
Airbus Helicopters’ deliveries increased to 145 units (H1 2022: 115 units), mainly driven by the Light helicopter segment. The Division’s revenues rose 16% mainly reflecting a solid performance across programs and services.
Revenues at Airbus Defence and Space decreased 8%, mainly driven by delays in Space Systems and delivery phasing in Military Air Systems.
Consolidated EBIT Adjusted was € 2,618 million ($2,915 million), while half year one in 2022 this stood at €2,645 million ($2,834 million).
Production updates
The ramp up on the A220 program is continuing towards a monthly production rate of 14 aircraft in the middle of the decade.
On the A320 family program, production is progressing well towards the previously announced rate of 75 aircraft per month in 2026.
On the A321XLR, the flight test program is progressing towards the expected entry-into-service in Q2 2024.
On widebody aircraft, Airbus continues to target a monthly rate of four for the A330 in 2024 and a rate of nine for the A350 at the end of 2025.