The civil aviation industry is recovering. Airbus and Boeing increased shipments of new aircraft to airlines in the first half of the year and the accounts have improved markedly since the darkest period of the pandemic. Airbus is confirmed as the healthiest manufacturer, has revised upward the profit forecasts for the end of the year. Boeing has made its first quarterly profit since the end of 2019 and will reduce employment by 10,000 fewer than it predicted in October.
Airbus delivered 297 commercial jets
The Franco-German Airbus group delivered 297 commercial aircraft in the first half, up from 196 in the first half last year. The group has raised its delivery target for the whole of 2021 from 560 to 600 aircraft. Commercial jet production is Airbus’ core business, revenues in this sector increased by 42% to € 17.81 billion .
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Net profit of 2.23 billion
The revenues of the entire group increased by 30% to 24.64 billion. The operating result (Ebit) improved from -1.56 billion to 2.73 billion, the adjusted operating result improved from -945 million to 2.7 billion. The half year ended with a net profit of € 2.23 billion, compared to a net loss of € 1.92 billion in the first half of 2020.
The expected operating profit doubles at the end of the year
For the full year, Airbus expects an adjusted Ebit of 4 billion euro, doubled with respect to previous estimates (“guidance”). New orders for commercial jets, net of cancellations, decreased by 87%, from 298 to 38. The order backlog at June 30 was 6,925 aircraft and 671 helicopters.
Helicopters and defense
Among other activities, helicopter deliveries increased from 104 to 115 machines, revenues increased by 11% to 2.59 billion. Net orders for new helicopters increased from 75 to 123. In the defense and space sector, revenues were stable at 4.54 billion, orders decreased by 37% to 3.51 billion.