- Aircraft manufacturing could go “from a duopoly to a potential triopoly,” the Airbus CEO said.
- Guillaume Faury was asked about the prospect of China’s Comac becoming a serious competitor.
- Comac is ramping up production of its C919 jet, similar to the A320 family and Boeing 737 Max.
The CEO of Airbus said Chinese aircraft manufacturer Comac could disrupt the dominance of his company and Boeing.
At a press conference on Thursday after announcing Airbus’ annual results, Guillaume Faury said the sector could go “from a duopoly to a potential triopoly.”
He was asked about Comac’s plans to increase production of its C919 jet — a single-aisle aircraft similar to the best-selling Airbus A320 family and Boeing’s 737 Max.
“Other aircraft manufacturers have tried to enter into this very competitive space in the past from other countries, not necessarily successfully, but I believe Comac is more likely to succeed,” Faury said.
He pointed to its “privileged access” to the Chinese market, which he said accounted for a fifth of global aircraft demand.
Faury added that this will also “probably give them the room” to export to other countries “when the product is mature.”
Su Bikun/VCG via Getty Images
“They have to do a certain ramp-up first — in the current supply environment, ramp-up is not an easy task — but we take them seriously,” the Airbus CEO said. “We consider this is one more competitor in this space.”
Data from ch-aviation shows there are 13 Comac C919s in service, operated by Air China, China Southern, and China Eastern.
There are more than 1,000 planes on order, Comac chairman He Dongfeng said in 2023, Chinese media reported.
Comac has also held discussions with Saudi officials and Brazil’s Total Linhas Aereas, Reuters reported.
The C919 is yet to be certified by regulators in the US or Europe. Comac hoped to win EU approval this year, Aviation Week reported last May.
Meanwhile, Airbus is planning to increase its A320-family production capacity in China. Faury said the planemaker hopes the second final assembly line at its Tianjin plant will come online this year.
Airbus reported a 6% increase in revenue for 2024 of 69.2 billion euros ($72.2 billion). Earnings per share rose 12% to 5.36 euros ($5.60).
Its consolidated order book valued at 629 billion euros at the end of 2024, up from 554 billion euros.
Airbus aims to deliver around 820 commercial aircraft in 2025, up by 54 from last year.
Shares fell almost 1% in Paris but have gained 15% over the past 12 months, in contrast to Boeing’s 8.5% decline.
Defense and space woes
It was a testing year for Airbus’ defense and space division. While its order intake was a record 16.7 billion euros, it reported a loss of 566 million euros — largely due to a 1.3 billion euro charge on its space programs.
“We are in a situation where some US players are disrupting the ecosystem and going at scale on new technologies,” Faury said.
He added that Airbus was in discussions with Thales and Leonardo about consolidating the European space sector.
In defense, Airbus also took a charge of 121 million euros on its A400M program. The company said there were “uncertainties” on the number of orders.
