Airbus Group (EPA:AIR) stated that its order backlog is now so large that it is turning away customers, particularly in the narrowbody or single-aisle short-haul space.
Speaking at the Farnborough Airshow, chief executive Guillaume Faury said the company cannot produce planes quickly enough to match the current market demand.
“Today we have to refuse orders because we are not able to deliver in the timeframe that is requested,” Faury said. “So if there’s a bit of softening of the market, that’s no problem for us.”
Faury added that the plane maker is sold out on most of its aircraft, but supply-chain issues mean it cannot easily accelerate production.
He expects these issues to last for a few years, adding: “We have thousands of suppliers, and when you have just a couple of them, a few of them that are late on the ramp-up, that’s slowing down everybody,” Faury said.
Boeing’s problems are adding to the order surge, as are new developments by Airbus itself.
Only yesterday, Wizz Air UK boss Marion Geoffroy predicted a price war over flights to the Middle East due to the longer range of Airbus’s new A321XLR narrowbody jets.
Wizz Air has already placed an order for 47 of these planes, with deliveries starting in February next year.