Airbus CEO Guillaume Faury says his company will have a clearer picture on 2022 deliveries by the end of November but the supply chain environment “remains very complex”.
Faury declined to comment on whether Airbus will meet its aim of “around 700” jet deliveries by the end of the year, despite preliminary statistics and industry sources indicating mounting difficulties.
“I will have a clearer picture by the end of November, but as you see the environment remains very complex and is really the main challenge we have to face,” he told reporters.
“So yes, we are working against a lot of tensions difficulties, and that’s nothing brand new,” Faury added.
Faury said supply chains had mostly overcome one set of COVID-related challenges early this year, only to see new issues replace them in recent months, such as the ongoing effect of the conflict in Ukraine on energy prices.
“I don’t think it’s going to get better in the short term … in the next six months. I don’t think it’s going to get worse either,” Faury told reporters at a meeting of the ASD European aerospace and defence industry association.
“I consider that the supply chain crisis is going to be longer than what we thought a couple of months ago. It’s more challenging and a more difficult environment as we speak.”