Airbus "Unprecedented Cash Outflow... Threatening Company Survival"

Airbus CEO Fori: "Cost Reduction Essential"

Additional Workforce Cuts Expected

▲ Guillaume Faury, CEO of Airbus [Image source=EPA Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kwon Jaehee] Airbus, Europe's leading aircraft manufacturer, has prioritized securing cash amid the global aviation industry's crisis.

According to Bloomberg on the 26th (local time), Guillaume Fori, Airbus CEO, stated in a letter to employees, "Unprecedented declines in aircraft demand are causing cash outflows," adding, "Considering the rapidly shrinking aviation industry, cost reduction is essential."

Alongside Boeing, Airbus shares the global commercial aircraft market. Since the COVID-19 pandemic, orders and deliveries have sharply declined. Last month, Airbus recorded net orders of 21 aircraft and deliveries of 36, significantly below last year's monthly averages of 64 orders and 71 deliveries. Last year, Airbus benefited from Boeing's suspension of 737 Max production following a crash, gaining a competitive advantage with its best-selling A320 model.

CEO Fori indicated that the plan announced earlier this month to reduce production by one-third might not reflect the worst-case scenario, suggesting the situation could worsen. He emphasized, "Cash is flowing out at an unprecedented rate, threatening the company's survival," and stressed the need for urgent actions to reduce cash outflows.

There is growing speculation that Airbus will proceed with additional workforce reductions. Previously, Airbus laid off about 3,000 employees in France and announced plans to cut a total of 2,362 jobs across Germany, the UK, Spain, and France by the end of next year. Bloomberg reported that Airbus is preparing job cuts while assessing the recession's severity and recovery pace.

The U.S. defense consulting firm The Teal Group projected that while Airbus and Boeing achieved 681 net orders last year, this year could see up to 1,000 order cancellations.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.