Airbus commercial aircraft CEO sees early decision on higher A350 output
By Tim Hepher
TOULOUSE, France, Oct 14 (Reuters) - Airbus AIR.PA plans to decide "sooner rather than later" on increased production capacity for its A350 wide-body jet, its commercial CEO Lars Wagner said, part of a trio of relatively near-term decisions as its rivalry with Boeing intensifies.
The world's largest planemaker is also actively studying bigger versions of the A350 and its smallest model, the loss-making A220, with decisions on both projects expected towards the beginning of a five-year planning period, he said.
"The decision for an increased rate on the A350 is inevitable. We're going to do it because the market clearly demands more aircraft," Wagner told a news briefing.
"It's a big decision, so we need to bring it to the board of directors. But this is going to happen rather sooner than later."
Airbus has one assembly line for the competitor to Boeing's 787 and 777 series, designed for 12 to 13 jets a month. Going higher would need a new line and industrial system, Wagner said.
Separately, he said, there is "clearly demand" for a longer A350 with more seats, widely dubbed the A350-2000, and a bigger version of the roughly 130-seat A220, known as the A220-500.
The former MTU Aero Engines CEO, who took the helm of Airbus' largest division this year, declined to say whether Airbus might loosen Rolls-Royce's RR.L position as sole engine maker on the A350 when it comes to powering the new version.
Industry sources say Airbus has toyed with using an engine from GE Aerospace for the roughly 400-seat A350-2000, but that interest from the engine maker has so far been muted.
Wagner reiterated that Airbus was confident of reaching year-end delivery goals despite recent quality flaws.
Longer term, Airbus continues to look at a "notional" date of 2030 for launching an all-new single-aisle jet, Wagner said.
The timing of successors to the best-selling Boeing 737 and Airbus A320 series is one of the industry's most keenly awaited decisions, driven in part by research from engine companies.
Some analysts are sceptical the next round of jets will take shape as early as 2030 as engine makers hone advanced technologies. Boeing BA.N CEO Kelly Ortberg told Aviation Week in July the next generation is "moving to the right".
PRATT & WHITNEY ENGINES
Near term, Airbus said it continues to face uncertainty over supplies of Pratt & Whitney engines for A320-family jets.
Airbus and the RTX RTX.N subsidiary have been debating who gets priority access to engine supplies — aircraft factories or airline repair shops.
Airbus said it has yet to reach agreement with Pratt on supplies beyond 2026.
"We are tackling it very seriously with Pratt & Whitney and trying to make progress as much as we can," Airbus operations chief Florent Massou dit Labaquere said.
The number of in-service aircraft grounded by spare engine delays is "still quite substantial," he added.
Reuters reported in March that Airbus had fired the opening shot in a claim for damages over late engine shipments in a dispute potentially worth billions of dollars.
Talks between the two companies to avert a legal battle have not so far provided a breakthrough, industry sources said.
Airbus has accused Pratt of backtracking on the number of engines allocated to its factories. Pratt, which supplies about 40% of A320 jets, has reported progress in stabilising supplies.
"Pratt & Whitney has increased annual deliveries of new engines since 2019, outpacing the industry and surpassing our overall market share for the fleet," RTX said in an emailed statement, adding it continued to expand maintenance capacity.
Massou said disruption to a different model of Pratt engine for the A220 had almost disappeared, however. Rolls-Royce RR.L engines are also on track after earlier concerns, but delays in seats remain a pressing issue for wide-body jets, he added.