Airbus slashes production rates, including for A320, a rival to MAX

The crisis that has embroiled the world’s airlines is now hitting the industry’s biggest aircraft makers, Boeing Co. BA 5.25% and Airbus EADSY -2.37% SE, and further challenging Boeing’s efforts to return its 737 MAX to service.

Airbus said it was slashing production by about a third after booking just 21 net orders for jets in March and delivering 36 jets to customers, amid a flood of requests by customers to defer and cancel orders.

Underscoring the challenge for Boeing’s 737 MAX, Airbus said it was cutting its production of the MAX’s chief rival—the A320—to 40 a month, down from about 60 precrisis. Chief Executive Guillaume Faury said the company was working on “operational and financial mitigation measures to face reality” amid the coronavirus pandemic, including slashing spending and cutting costs at its plants.

Excerpt from WSJ
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