Airbus kicked off the second half of 2021 with a strong delivery report. July saw 47 aircraft deliveries to 32 customers globally, taking Airbus' delivery total for 2021 to 344 aircraft. The European giant saw deliveries drop from the bumper month of June but continues to surpass last year's lows.

Airbus A320neo
The A320neo family continues to drive deliveries for Airbus, with over 85% of deliveries from the narrowbody. Photo: Airbus

Keep going

Airbus delivered 47 aircraft to 32 operators around the globe in July. While deliveries fell by nearly 40% compared to the previous month, it still represents an improvement from figures earlier in the year. Overall, Airbus has racked up 344 aircraft handovers in 2021, a strong recovery from last year.

As expected, the A320 family is the star of the report. Airbus delivered 22 A320neos, 17 A321neos, and one A321ceo to carriers and lessors around the globe. This represents 85% of all deliveries this month, leaving only seven other planes left for deliveries. Next up is the A220-300, which saw four deliveries, three of which went to a brand new operator and one to JetBlue.

Air Austral, Airbus A220, Toulouse
French carrier Air Austral debuted its A220 fleet and quickly took delivery of three news jets last month. Photo: Airbus

Widebody deliveries continue to slump as airlines see little demand for long-haul international flying or high-capacity aircraft. Airbus saw no A330 handovers and two A350s leave its facilities, with one going to Delta Air Lines and the other to China Eastern. Finally, Airbus saw one A319ceo go to Tibet Airlines, closing out the month's report.

However, things were not so smooth on the order side. Airbus only saw a single order for two A320neos in July, coming from Mexican low-cost carrier Volaris. This is the lowest figure since January and shows that airlines remain largely conservative on future investments.

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Keeping busy

When it comes to aircraft demand, low-cost airlines have been at the front of the pack. IndiGo took delivery of three A320neos, Wizz Air took on three A321neos, and Spirit also added three A320neos (including one from lessor AerCap). Other major names include Volaris, Viva Aerobus, VietJet, Peach, Flyadeal, and many more.

Full-service airlines weren't too far behind either, though. China Eastern took delivery of two A320neos and one (special) A350, Lufthansa, American and Turkish all added an A321neo each, and Air Austral saw its three new A220s.

The First A350 Delivered From China
Chinese airlines have been busy adding new aircraft as domestic demand remains strong. Photo: Airbus

Chinese carriers have been particularly busy adding new aircraft. China Southern, Air China, Shenzhen Airlines, Sichuan Airlines, Tibet Airlines, Juneyao Airlines, Qingdao Airlines, and others all took deliveries in July alone. While domestic demand has been dented by a major COVID outbreak in recent weeks, it has stayed strong throughout most of 2021, boosting deliveries too.

Growing

As the aviation industry begins rebounding in many parts of the world, Airbus is seeing a return to its previous targets. The manufacturer reported a net profit of €362 million ($426mn) in the first quarter of 2021, continuing its streak of success. Moreover, as things look to get better, Airbus will be hoping to comfortably beat its delivery targets and garner new orders in the coming months to boost its growth.

What do you think about Airbus' performance in July? Let us know in the comments!