AerCap CEO Aengus Kelly has claimed that planemakers will not hit their production targets due to ongoing market obstacles, including staffing problems and supply chain issues. We take a closer look at his comments below.
Post-pandemic aircraft production targets
Aircraft manufacturers saw their production rates grind to a halt over the pandemic amid unprecedented circumstances. With airlines ordering fewer aircraft and additional complications involving staffing and supply chains, aircraft factories were pumping out planes at a fraction of their pre-pandemic rate.
However, with the aviation industry now undergoing a strong recovery, planemakers look to return to, or even exceed, their former production levels. AerCap CEO Aengus Kelly thinks it won't be that easy - a Reuters report reveals Kelly told a Eurocontrol aviation conference that manufacturers would be lucky to reach 90% of their production targets.
Having laid off staff over the pandemic as production rates slowed, planemakers are now struggling to recruit again. Kelly believes that problems finding skilled employees will make it impossible for them to fully realize their latest production targets.
What's the holdup?
While Kelly has pinpointed the challenges of recruitment, plane manufacturers are also facing severe supply chain problems caused by both labor and materials shortages.
For example, Boeing recently revealed it is removing engines on built 737 MAXs amid supply chain problems as engine maker CFM cannot match its 737 MAX production rate. CFM's issues primarily pertain to a shortage of structural castings, but challenges in recruiting qualified employees have also played a role.
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Boeing will look to hit 31 narrowbodies per month by the end of 2022 before ramping up production to 47 aircraft by the end of 2023, five fewer than what Boeing was managing in 2019.
Airbus has also struggled to ramp up production due to problems with suppliers. The European planemaker hopes to reach around 75 A320-family planes per month by 2025 but has already received pushback from suppliers for its target of 65 aircraft by the summer of 2023.
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Boeing to bounce back
Having been plagued by several major problems in the past few years, all eyes are on Boeing as the US-based company looks to turn things around. The planemaker has grappled with the fallout of the MAX groundings in 2020 along with Dreamliner production and delivery problems.
According to RTE, Kelly told the Airline Economics conference in May,
"I think Boeing will bounce back. There are a few scenes in this movie to be played out yet. Clearly Boeing has got its own issues, but Boeing is a tremendous company that's helped build the world for the last 100 years and I would never write them off, they still build great airplanes."
Kelly added that AerCap, the world's largest aviation lessor, is already leasing aircraft to airlines for 2025 as demand for air travel remains robust.
Do you agree with AerCap CEO Aengus Kelly's comments about plane manufacturers? Let us know your insights in the comments.