By Mauro Orru

Airbus said it expects to deliver more planes to customers this year than in 2024, betting that it can produce enough aircraft to keep up with demand even as supply-chain snarls continue to plague its manufacturing operations.

The European plane maker is forecasting roughly 820 commercial aircraft deliveries this year, more than the 766 planes it dispatched in 2024. The group was expected to guide for about 824 deliveries this year, according to consensus estimates by Visible Alpha.

Airbus has faced challenges in recent years in sourcing components and materials to assemble aircraft and deliver them to customers on schedule. The group had initially aimed to ship out roughly 800 planes last year, but it lowered that target in June to about 770 due to difficulties in procuring engines, aerostructures and cabin equipment.

Its U.S. rival Boeing delivered 348 planes last year, down from 528 the prior year. Boeing has also been grappling with supply-chain hurdles on top of a debilitating machinists' strike that had halted production of most airplanes. The U.S. company has been under renewed pressure to ensure safety and quality in its manufacturing operations after last year's Alaska Airlines emergency landing that involved one of its jets.

Airbus said supply-chain challenges, particularly with Spirit AeroSystems Holdings, were putting pressure on plans to ramp up production of its A220 narrow-body and A350 wide-body aircraft. The jet-fuselage supplier, which split off from Boeing about two decades ago, has been at the center of quality issues affecting 737 MAX jets. Spirit AeroSystems made the fuselage involved in the Alaska Airlines blowout.

Airbus said it still expects to produce 14 of its A220 aircraft a month in 2026 and 75 A320 narrow-body planes a month in 2027. It also expects to produce around 4 A330 planes a month, though it didn't provide a date. For its bigger model, the company continues to target 12 A350s a month in 2028. However, the group said it was delaying the entry into service of the A350 freighter variant to the second half of 2027 from the end of 2026.

Airbus posted revenue of 24.72 billion euros ($25.77 billion) for the three months to the end of December, up 8% on year.

Net profit jumped 66% to 2.42 billion euros, while adjusted earnings before interest and taxes--Airbus's preferred measure of profitability--grew 16% to 2.56 billion euros.

Analysts had expected revenue of 24.68 billion euros, a net profit of nearly 2.10 billion euros and adjusted EBIT of 2.60 billion euros, according to market consensus provided by the company based on estimates from 22 analysts.

Airbus said it would propose a 2024 dividend of 2 euros a share and a special dividend of 1 euro a share. Last year, the company proposed a dividend of 1.80 euros a share and a special dividend of 1 euro a share.

For 2025, Airbus said it expects adjusted EBIT of around 7 billion euros. Free cash flow before customer financing--a closely watched metric by analysts and investors--is projected at around 4.5 billion euros.

Write to Mauro Orru at mauro.orru@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

Airbus is delaying the entry into service of the A350 freighter to the second half of 2027 from 2026 previously. "Airbus Sets Higher Plane Delivery Goal Despite Lingering Supply-Chain Hurdles -- Update," at 0637 GMT, said the delay was from the end of 2026.

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

February 20, 2025 02:58 ET (07:58 GMT)

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