Dueling Euro/US Manufacturers Return to The Competitive Status Quo

Airbus has seen its backlog of ordered aircraft slide through January after its dispute with Qatar Airways escalated.

A London High Court lawsuit over quality issues with the firm's other A350 aircraft led the airline to cancel the large outstanding order, tossing 52 aircraft bound for the contentious customer off their books altogether. In all, Airbus cancelled 50 A321 narrowbodies and 2 A350 widebodies. 

Airbus had a fine month regardless, delivering 30 planes to beat previous 2021 performance by 9 planes total. The issue with Qatar has impacted sales targets and goals, putting Airbus behind as the year opens. Luckily for them, the airline industry has been recovering quite nicely compared to expectations immediately following the pandemic. The legal duel between the two has led Qatar to jump ship with a big order to Boeing in recent days, picking up 40 aircraft from Airbus' fiercest rival. 

The spectators have had a fun time of things, seeing the competition heat back up to a state of relative normalcy in the Boeing/Airbus market battle. Boeing has been resurgent following a series of missteps, following issues in the Dreamliner's production and the 737 Max returning to service. The manufacturer bounced back with 32 deliveries in January, once again delivering the majority of its aircraft as narrowbody 737s. In all, it took 77 sales including the brand-new Qatar order. Some accounting shifts brought out an additional 23 orders from at-risk deals, in total granting 98 sales. This year is shaping up to be an interesting one for both outfits, having a mix of ingredients including an expected travel boom, easing pandemic restrictions, and expanding airline operations around the world. 

FMI: www.airbus.com, www.boeing.com