Airbus consolidated revenues increased 17 percent to €35.2 billion for the nine months ended 30 September 2021, mainly reflecting the higher number of commercial aircraft deliveries compared to 9m 2020. A total of 424 commercial aircraft were delivered in the nine-month period, comprising 34 A220s, 341 A320 Family, 11 A330s, 36 A350s and two A380s.
Revenues generated by Airbus’ commercial aircraft activities increased 21 percent, largely reflecting the delivery performance compared to 2020 which was strongly impacted by COVID-19.
Airbus has reported gross commercial aircraft orders of 270, with net orders of 133 aircraft after cancellations. The order backlog was 6,894 commercial aircraft on 30 September 2021.
“The nine-month results reflect a strong performance across the company as well as our efforts on cost containment and competitiveness. As the global recovery continues, we are closely monitoring potential risks to our industry. We are focused on securing the A320 Family ramp up and striving to ensure the right industrial and supply chain capabilities are in place,” said Airbus Chief Executive Officer Guillaume Faury. “Based on our nine-month performance, we have updated our 2021 earnings and cash guidance. We are strengthening the balance sheet to secure investment for our long-term ambitions.”
Consolidated EBIT Adjusted was €3,369 million (9m 2020: € -125 million), while the EBIT Adjusted related to Airbus’ commercial aircraft activities totalled €2,739 million (9m 2020: € -641 million), mainly driven by the “operational performance linked to deliveries and efforts on cost containment and competitiveness”.
Airbus has announced that the A220 production rate, which is currently at five aircraft a month, is expected to increase to around rate six per month in early 2022, with a monthly production rate of 14 envisaged by the middle of the decade. Airbus adds that it is working to secure the ramp up of A320 production and is on trajectory to achieve a monthly rate of 65 aircraft by summer 2023.
The manufacturer noted that the recent commercial successes of the A330 programme has enabled a monthly rate increase from around 2 to almost 3 aircraft at the end of 2022, while the A350 programme is expected to increase from around 5 to around 6 aircraft a month in early 2023.
On 30 September 2021, Airbus had gross cash €21.7 billion with a consolidated net cash position of €6.7 billion. Airbus states that its liquidity position remains strong, standing at €27.7 billion at the end of September 2021. Given the increase in the net cash position and the robust liquidity, Airbus decided not to renew the undrawn €6.2 billion Supplemental Liquidity Line which matured in September. In the meantime, the maturity of the €6 billion Revolving Syndicated Credit Facility has been extended by a year.
Assuming no further disruptions to the world economy, air traffic, or the company’s internal operations, Airbus expects to make 600 commercial aircraft deliveries for the full year 2021, EBIT Adjusted of € 4.5 billion; Free Cash Flow before M&A and Customer Financing of €2.5 billion.