Machinists at Spirit vote to end strike; will return to work on July 5

Machinists Union members in Wichita, KS, wait in line to vote on a second contract offer from Spirit AeroSystems Thursday. The offer was approved with a 63% yes vote. Spirit will resume production of critical Boeing aircraft components on July 5./International Association of Machinists photo

By Bryan Corliss 

June 30, 2023, © Leeham News – Machinists Union members working for Spirit AeroSystems in Wichita, KS, will return to work on July 5, after ratifying a new four-year contract with the company.

Some 63% of Local 839 members voted in favor of the contract on Thursday, union officials said. Spirit’s first offer was rejected by 79% of union members voting. 

“This membership vote by the majority of 63% is a move in the right direction for our local,” said Cornell Beard, the president of IAM District 70, the parent organization of Local 839. “Let’s work hard to set ourselves up for the big win in four years too.”

In a statement, Spirit leadership welcomed the yes vote, and said they would “closely coordinate” with suppliers and customers as the company restarts production.

Workers will start today preparing for the production restart after the Fourth of July holiday, the company said. The plant has been closed since June 22, the day after Local 839 members rejected the first offer.

  • Strike closes plant for less than two weeks
  • Workers get 9.5% raise this year, plus bonus
  • Second offer ‘what we worked for’

Strike closes plant for less than two weeks 

The ratification vote means Spirit’s Wichita plant will be closed for 12 days before work resumes. Picket lines went up outside the plant on Saturday, June 24. Later that morning, the two sides starting meeting with a federal mediator. They announced on Tuesday (June 27) that they had reached the new tentative agreement. 

During that time, worked stopped on production of key Boeing aerostructures. Spirit’s Wichita plant produces 70% of the 737 airframe, along with the nose sections of all other aircraft.

A longer strike would have seriously jeopardized Boeing plans to increase deliveries of 737s and 787s this year.

Spirit also produces parts for Airbus A220s in Wichita, which also was affected by the strike.

Workers get 9.5% raise this year, plus bonus

“We listened closely to our employees and brought forward a fair and competitive offer,” Spirit CEO Tom Gentile said. “We look forward to getting back to the important work of delivering quality products to our customers.”

The ratification vote guarantees workers 9.5% pay increases this year (along with 2% guaranteed bonuses). 

Over four years, union-represented workers will see guaranteed 23.5% wage increases, along with cost-of-living adjustments (capped at 3.5%) and the 2% annual bonuses. 

Also, the contract does away with mandatory weekend overtime. Previously, Spirit was able to force mechanics to come in to work both Saturdays and Sundays on two out of every three weekends. 

The contract also preserved the company’s existing health insurance plan for workers. Spirit’s initial contract offer doubled copays for health care visits, and dropped coverage on a wide range of common brand-name drugs.

Second offer ‘what we worked for’

Prior to the vote, the mood of the union’s members was mixed. Comments posted on the Local 839 Facebook page showed most union members — but certainly not all — thinking that they had come out ahead with their one-week work stoppage. 

“This second offer is what we worked for,” one advocate wrote. “Yeah, the numbers may not be as high as some of us wanted, but it touched everything we asked for.”  

But others weren’t impressed.

“The supposed gains in Offer 2 were almost all just removal of the obviously bad things in No. 1, (with) others rearranged,” another worker replied. “Continued medication coverage? Not having to come in on a weekend? Is this the 1920s?”

The improved pay raises “still don’t match inflation or stagnation of the past decades, and the supposed increase in cost-of-living from Offer 2 is basically covered by the lowered (ratification) bonus,” he continued. 

But overall, positive comments outnumbered negative ones at a roughly 60/40 margin. 

“I think we gained a lot by walking,” one Machinist wrote. “I, for one, am willing to take this contract on the benefits we gained, and to come back to the table in four years.” 

89 Comments on “Machinists at Spirit vote to end strike; will return to work on July 5

      • Not just costs at BA but costs at all of Spirit’s customers, including Airbus.

        • Wichita only makes 8 engine pylons per month for AB — a tiny fraction of all the major parts that it makes for BA.

          • I’m glad the line workers got a decent outcome from their job action.

            However:

            “..The supposed gains in Offer 2 were almost all just removal of the obviously bad things in No. 1, (with) others rearranged,” another worker replied.. “Continued medication coverage? Not having to come in on a weekend? Is this the 1920s?”..”

          • I was threatened one time about having to do mandatory overtime.

            State Law says you can ‘t force OT. It can be worked out a part of a bargaining agreement within certain parameters.

            At the time our company had taken a 2nd contract and as I was the only one who knew what they were doing, it was mine to fulfill and I did so on OT after I was done with work. Why wreck a weekend?

            Then an issue came up with ramp stripping. Out of my bailiwick for position I had worked hard to achieve and the whole operation was a clown show. I refused to have anything to do with it.

            The Manager said, ok, I am cutting off all your OT.

            My response was, fine, good luck with holding up that lucrative contract you are making money on. Also be advised I have a 2nd job I can arrange to do on my weekends and I will not be available for any emergency callouts.

            He caved. Voluntary is vastly better, its people that want to be there and very likely they get their full allotment.

            It sounds like Spirit adjusted the offer for a good balance in agreement. 75% is a good target so they missed that but not a hair shave close vote either.

          • Sure, the immediate cost increase due to the new labor contract is at Wichita. However, those higher costs will eventually spread to Spirits other US facilities. Significant portions of the A350 are made in North Carolina. They will eventually be affected.

          • @ Mike Bohnet

            North Carolina makes a few center panels for the A350 — a program that has already reached breakeven, and is currently generating profits. A small cost increase will have a negligible effect.

            BA is making a loss on every single one of its current programs — so further cost increases are the last thing the company needs.

          • “North Carolina makes a few center panels for the A350”

            Yeah right. More like all A350 Section 15’s (comprised of 6 large panels each) and all A350 forward wing spars.

          • @ Mike Bohnet
            And what percentage of the total value of the airframe do those parts represent?

          • And the first move is to deflect.

            I have not looked into it but from memory Mike B is correct on what Spirit makes on the A350. Hat off to Mike B for paying attention.

            The panels alone are a huge deal.

            As for cost travel, that is less certain. Choice of sites in the SE US are driven by no unions and or very business friendly anti union laws.

            A bigger driver is Airbus keeping an eye on its suppliers and not running them into the ground (maybe a lesson Boeing is beginning to get).

            Everyone needs to make money in the chain, if they don’t, then those bossiness will fail or sell out (Charleston came into assistance as a Boeing entity due to failing supplier)

            But clearly Spirit is a key supplier and while they make a significant percentage of the A350, its not about percentage, its about a 2nd course (or not in this case) and amazing to see something as simple as aircraft interiors cause backlogs.

          • @ TW

            “…its not about percentage…”

            It is, actually, because the discussion is ultimately about the effect on costs per frame.
            But you seem to have missed that 😉

      • No significant impact on Boeing.

        Take yourself for an analyst and rewrite history 👍

        A pious wish visibly missed?

          • No proof yet? “We will see”? Pious wishes again? Stop with that…

          • @ Checklist
            How can there be cost-related “proof yet” when the labor package was announced only 4 days ago?

            Do you have any grasp of logic whatsoever?

  1. Will be interesting to see what happens within the Union: A rejection of what Union leadership had agreed to by 75%, followed by an approval of an improved offer by 63% suggest some disconnect (to put it mildly). On the other hand (no names coming up) I have ‘experienced’ negotiating teams agreeing to take a management offer to the members, certain that it will be rejected and planning to use that result to demand improvement. I have no idea what was happening in this case.

    • Me either though It does seem to have been a surprise.

      Relevant is its settled and its just another hiccup.

  2. Maybe Spirit’s work and QC will be better for BA now, after
    the improved contract.

    • One would hope so.
      On the other hand, 1 in 3 workers voted against the package…

    • As it was a supplier issue on the 737 brackets, perhaps this is wrong.

      Flip to that is I never did worse work regardless of what was going on, how long I kept working there?

      Voting against a contract and not doing your best work is not linked.

      People in the tech world I lived in did their best or they were lousy workers and no matter how much you paid them they did no more work nor better.

  3. This is also one of the reasons why D. Calhoun said that for the next aircraft development Boeing should be less dependent on subcontractors.

      • @mike
        Thanks for silencing the “so called” expert !!!!;
        Kinston does contribute a substantial portion of A350 fuselage production !!

        • I said “North Carolina makes a few center panels for the A350”, and that’s correct. Those panels then get shipped to France, where they’re used to construct section 15 of the fuselage (by combining panels, beams, floor, fairings).

          So, where the fuselage is concerned, Spirit manufactures the *skin* of *one third of the fuselage*; the rest of the skin, and the internal fuselage structure, is manufactured elsewhere.

          You evidently missed the bit about relative program costs/margins 😉

          • Not correct. North Carolina makes ALL center panels for the A350.

            By using “a few”, it seems like you are intentionally trying to minimize Spirit’s contribution to the A350.

          • @ Mike Bohnet
            Spirit makes NO part of the forward or rear fuselage sections, and NO part of the fuselage interior structure.
            Hence, perfectly accurate to refer to “a few panels”.

            It seems like you are intentionally trying to maximize Spirit’s contribution to the A350.

          • You didn’t say “a few panels”. You said “a few center panels”. There’s a difference. Intentionally misleading?

          • There’s also a difference between “a few” and “a few of the”.
            Time to go back to the school books 😏

            Hint: difference between generic and specific…

          • So you were intentionally misleading. Check.

            Glad to see you’re hitting the books. Don’t let me distract you.

          • Mike B:

            Spot on, good to see others call him out.

            He gives alternative facts a bad name.

          • @ Mike Bohnet

            Being intentionally accurate — not intentionally misleading.

            No wonder BA is in its current state if its engineers have difficulty grasping basic linguistics…

          • Bryce,
            Which Boeing engineers have difficulty grasping basic linguistics? Who are you talking about here, with your carefully selected words?😂

  4. Here’s a list (from the Spirit website) of the various aircraft programs in which it’s involved.
    Makes it easy to see the relative extent to which BA/AB rely on Spirit’s US facilities.

    https://www.spiritaero.com/company/programs/

    Of note:
    737 MAX: “For more than 50 years, the Boeing 737 has been built in Wichita, Kansas. Today, Spirit makes approximately 70 percent of this narrow-body aircraft for Boeing.”

    787: “Spirit AeroSystems delivers a fully integrated fuselage structure for the Boeing 787 Dreamliner. The composite forward fuselage (Section 41) and engine pylons are built in Wichita, Kansas, and the wing fixed leading edge and wing movable leading edge are built in Tulsa, Oklahoma, and Subang, Malaysia.”

    777X: “Spirit provides the forward fuselage, nacelles and struts for both the 777 and 777X.”

    KC-46A: “Spirit has manufactured the tanker’s forward fuselage (Section 41), strut and nacelle components, and the fixed leading edge since 2013”

    ***

    A350: “The central section panels are built in Kinston, North Carolina, then incorporated into the fuselage (Section 15) in Saint-Nazaire, France. Spirit also manufactures the A350 wing front spar and fixed leading edge.”

    A220: “Since 2009, Spirit has designed and built the pylon for the Airbus A220 commercial jet. In addition to the pylon, the work package for both the CS100 and CS300 aircraft models includes systems, strut-to-wing hardware and the aft fairing package”

    No Spirit US involvement in the A320/321 program or the A330neo/MRTT program.

    • So, when do Boeing’s contracts with Spirit expire and need to be renegotiated? Spirit’s immediately increasing labor costs don’t necessarily mean immediately increasing parts costs for Boeing. Spirit might have to take it in the shorts for a bit, before they can pass those costs to Boeing.

      • “Spirit might have to take it in the shorts for a bit,…”

        They certainly might — although, with multiple quarters of losses in a row, Spirit isn’t really in a position to shoulder extra costs, is it?

        Just like BA, in that regard. Still, very much in BA’s interest to pay up, isn’t it? It still has a little cash in the kitty, and the PDPs from Air India have just come in…

        • Hmmm. So, you’re not so sure after all that Boeing’s immediate costs will go up.

          • I didn’t specify *immediate* costs — I merely referred to increased costs, without discussing timing.

          • Ok, so Spirit’s increased labor cost won’t immediately affect Boeing’s production costs. Check.

          • @ Mike Bohnet

            We currently have no info on Boeing’s immediate costs — so your check may be premature.
            Absence of evidence is not evidence of absence.

  5. Bryce,

    So the argument of
    Mike Bohnet on the A350 and A220 is valid…
    Yet you have stubbornly refuted something that was clearly flawed before.
    In contradiction to yourself you have listed the activities of Spirit

    • Mike Bohnet didn’t make any comment on the A220.
      He made a small augmentation as regards the A350 (wing parts).
      And you’re completely misinterpreting the word “refuted”.
      Perhaps you should just post your comments in French?

      • lol!!
        How does that change the substance of my message?

        [Edited as violation of Reader Comment rules.]

        • And then we have Ginger Rogers (sp?) who did everything Fred did but backwards and in heels!

  6. Looks like BA managed to deliver 50 MAXs in June, of which 6 from inventory. This brings the Q2 total to 103 (mixed line and inventory).

    AB appears to have delivered 58 A320/A321 frames in June, bringing the Q2 total to 141 units. In addition, 13 A320s were delivered in Q2, giving a total of 154 NB frames.

    ***

    BA delivered 5 787s in June, of which 2 from inventory.

    AB delivered 4 A350s and 2 A330neos in June.

      • “13 A320s” should be “13 A220s”…

        Pretty good, for that fledgling program.

        • Indeed.

          I suspect that one of the reasons why AB may want to do an A220-500 is to provide a mechanism by which it can reduce dependence on external suppliers, and thus reduce costs. It’s probably got some sort of exclusivity clauses in its supplier contracts for the A220-100/300 — but an A220-500 would give a chance to do things differently. We’re already seeing the first signs of this in the “extra engine option” discussion.

          But we’ll see.

  7. “Airbus trials new wing designs in technology race with Boeing”

    “FILTON, England: Airbus is stepping up testing of radical new wing technology as the planemaker lays the foundation for a future successor to its best-selling A320 series, but faces a battle to bring down costs.

    “British Industry Minister Nusrat Ghani inaugurated a wing technology plant in southwest England on Tuesday (Jul 4) to help design and build wings that are longer, lighter, more slender and feature folding wingtips to fly more sustainably.

    “It’s our programme to prepare technologies we are going to need for the next generation of Airbus aircraft, whatever that is,” Sue Partridge, head of the company’s Wing of Tomorrow programme, told reporters.

    “The opening comes as Boeing researches an elongated, ultra-light concept called Transonic Truss-Braced Wings.

    “The choice of wing design and production methods by either manufacturer, together with engine developments, will shape aircraft competition well into the second half of the century.”

    https://www.channelnewsasia.com/business/airbus-trials-new-wing-designs-technology-race-boeing-3605841

  8. I did a deep dive on Airbus catching up on Av Week a few days ago.

    Its amazing the bewildering comments and statements out of Airbus.

    A good laugh was that they could not threaten Raytheon on P&W problems (RPX now?) because it was too big.

    One of the not discussed items was on the A380 wing and premature spar cracking. Airbus comment was they no longer are using that material. Good for them, try it, it does not work dump it (mesh anyone?)

    Its all repairable but you have to wonder how many Airbus issues gets swept under the rug and does not see the light of day?

    Comments that with supply chain issues both A and B are working behind the scenes to find ways to keep them in business.

    I saw the FedEx equivalent of PFS and an equally good laugh when it failed beyond belief. I was not in the link enough to know but I believe FedEx had assurances that they would save money and the firm that had the bright idea of central sourcing everything paid some serious coin (well by my standards) to pay the losses that were guaranteed to save money and get out of the agreement.

    I could see long ago if there was one and only one company that made the widget you had to have the widget to complete the aircraft. Multiply that times hundreds and the stupidity of PFS was astonishing.

    Sometimes I wonder if I should have been a CEO? Hire me, I can save you money by not doing stupid things!

  9. https://onemileatatime.com/news/777-partners-airline-investments/

    777 Partners’ Suspicious Airline Investments (Flair & Bonza)

    777 Partners has had some Boeing 737 MAXs repossessed
    In March 2023, Canadian ultra low cost carrier Flair had four of its Boeing 737 MAXs repossessed. The jets were owned by a leasing firm named Airborne Capital, and 777 Partners was reportedly on the hook for making those payments.

    ‘Timothy O’Neil-Dunne, Flair’s former Chief Commercial Officer, has accused 777 Partners of fraud and breach of contract, also claiming that 777 Partners makes money from the airlines it owns stakes in by overcharging them for aircraft; 777 Partners reportedly buys 737 MAXs for $42 million, and then sells them to its own airlines for $52 million, realizing a $10 million profit per plane at the time of delivery’

    If the details contained in the lawsuit about 777 Partners’ investment in Flair are correct (777 Partners is pocketing $10 million on each 777, and is charging 18% interest on loans to its own airlines), then one has to wonder how much longer Flair and Bonza will be in business.

      • I find it most amazing that someone who is not a financial guy (I am for sure not) not a Boeing emplyee at the high end of the ranks knows so much about what it cost to build a 60 year old aircraft with all the tooling paid for (A330NEO anyone?) not to mention great discounts on the hull itself from an organization that thought it could (as did Boeing claim) Boeing and still make money.

        Truly an incredible industry insider who is willing to share their in depth knowledge and expertise when they could be consulting with people (Airbus) on pricing and competitive campaigns. I just stand in awe.

        Speaking of which a smaller operation in Mexican is negotiating (MOU) for 90 Airbus A321NEO who also has 25 on order with production sold out until 2050 or so (grin).

        I can only assume Airbus is giving them away with a free toaster to boot!

        • Yes, TW, we already knew that you have zero understanding of financial matters…

          • How does he keep going on about ‘tooling be paid for’ when it clearly states in the financials that there is an amount related to tooling in the DPB?

            Unless he means that Boeing has cut cheques and paid suppliers and employees for the tooling – in which case he is correct. I mean, it’s been years since the tooling has been installed, way past the 90-120 days BA likes to pay their suppliers in, so it must have been paid for from the bank account, right?

            But the money to cover the tooling hasn’t been earned yet, nor has it been allocated out of the DPB and the amount is still sitting in Inventory. That much is clear and without any shred of a doubt.

        • We have a good idea what it costs Boeing and Airbus (and others) to build their airplanes. But we’re not telling anyone but on consulting clients!

          • Hey!

            Looked who popped up on vacation, to let us know; he’s in the know.

            I hope you and the better half are enjoying your R&R.

            Be Well,

            F

    • @Frank
      We already had evidence that recent, big MAX orders — such as those from Southwest (65%) and Ryanair (69%) — were getting very steep discounts.
      But, from this data relating to 777 Partners (65.5%), it would appear that smaller MAX orders were also getting steeply discounted.
      One can conclude, by extension, that the big orders from Alaska, Delta and United enjoyed similar discounts.

      Looks like a very sizable portion of the increase in the order book since re-cert (about 840 frames) was sold with no margin (or a negative one)

      • So digging a little bit into Flair & Bonza shows the combined fleets to be about 25 Max’s.

        777 partners has some of those Max’s from another lessor

        ‘The jets were owned by a leasing firm named Airborne Capital’

        Who knows how 777 structured the deal, but if the $42 million & $52 million numbers are correct (I guess they’re getting the aircraft at a value of $42 million and turning around and using $52 million as a baseline value for leasing purposes), but lost in the shuffle is Airborne Capital.

        If 777 is getting them at $42 million from Airborne…

        …well, Airborne Capital isn’t working for free, are they? They want to make money on the assets they possess.

        (and with the magic of the internet and a link to the AC webpage)

        https://airborne.capital/sales-and-remarketing

        They’ve got 3 Max’s for lease or sale (the Flair jets?);

        ‘2 x B737 MAX 8 (2021 vintage) and 1 x B737 MAX 8 (2022 vintage) w/ LEAP-1B27 engines’

        Anyone wanna call up Cian Dooley there and ask how much you can scoop up a Max for?

    • IIRC, deliveries are usually back-loaded, with the second half of the year picking up – so 650 to 700 wouldn’t be a bad target.

      They have to average ~64 a month, from July to Dec, to reach 700. (if they did 72 in June, they should be able to get there)

      But as we all know, if 2023 is a rinse repeat of 2022, due to supply constraints, they can make a tidy profit on 661 deliveries.

      https://www.airbus.com/sites/g/files/jlcbta136/files/2023-02/EN-Press-Release-Airbus-FY2022-Results.pdf

      661 commercial aircraft delivered in FY 2022
      ● Revenues € 58.8 billion; EBIT Adjusted up 16% to € 5.6 billion
      ● EBIT (reported) € 5.3 billion; EPS (reported) € 5.40
      ● Free cash flow before M&A and customer financing € 4.7 billion

      • Airbus stated a few months ago that it’s “not afraid to make gliders”.
        So, one can assume some A320/A321/A220 aircraft that recently rolled off the line are now sitting on the apron, just waiting for (PW) engines to be delivered. Once a set of engines comes, recipient planes get delivered.

        Same applies to A350/A330neo aircraft waiting for premium seats.

        So, that back-loading process has already had a (hidden) kick-start.

    • Boeing’s Q2 plane deliveries are higher than estimated: Baird

      https://seekingalpha.com/news/3986043-boeings-q2-plane-deliveries-are-higher-than-estimated-baird

      Boeing’s Q2 deliveries of commercial airplanes totaled about 134, 30% greater than the average estimate of 103, Baird said:

      737: 103 deliveries (101 Max deliveries)
      767: 7 deliveries (7 767-F freighters)
      777: 5 deliveries
      787: 19 deliveries

      June deliveries total about 58 aircraft:

      737: 49 deliveries
      767: 3 deliveries
      777: 1 delivery
      787: 5 deliveries

      Boeing (BA) on July 11 is expected to report its orders and deliveries for June.

      —————————————–

      Not BA numbers, but Baird

        • Airbus backlog at the end of Q1 2023 was 7254.
          In Q2, it delivered 189 units, and net order intake was 1044.
          Current backlog is thus 8109 — 80% higher than the BA figure (4500).

          ***

          It will be interesting to see the official BA delivery figures.
          For the last few months, there have been substantial numbers of monthly cancellations — mostly MAXs, but also 787s and some legacy models.
          In the first 5 months of this year, the tally for BA stood at 96 cancellations (the corresponding AB figure was 34).

          • Q1

            737 113
            747 1
            767 1
            777 4
            787 11
            Total 130

            Baird Q2

            737: 103 deliveries (101 Max deliveries)
            767: 7 deliveries (7 767-F freighters)
            777: 5 deliveries
            787: 19 deliveries

            —————————————

            10 less Max’s
            No 747
            6 more 767’s
            1 more 777
            8 more 787’s

            10 less NB’s
            14 more WB’s

            Wanna estimate BCA revenues for the quarter?

            ———————————————-

            Q1

            Commercial Airplanes $6,704

            I’ll say $7.8 billion for the quarter, give or take $100 million.

          • @ Frank
            Hard to estimate revenue: many of the 787s are from inventory, and I suspect that they’ve been extra-heavily discounted to account for the fact that they’re now several years old. On the other hand, there were fewer 737s from inventory.

            I’m much more interested in earnings excl. debt servicing costs. That figure was previously $270k per frame — I suspect it won’t be very different this time.

  10. Fleet flip

    Breaking: Icelandair Swaps Planemakers Ordering 13 Airbus A321XLRs

    ‘Icelandair has switched allegiance with a surprising order for the forthcoming long-range narrowbody from Airbus. The Icelandic carrier today placed a firm order for 13 of the A321XLR. Alongside this, the carrier has stated its intentions to lease four A321LRs in the interim, giving it a fleet size of 17.’

    “We are not waiting for Boeing. We want to grow and develop our network. But the MAX is not going any further than Seattle and so on. In the past, we have flown to the likes of San Francisco along the West Coast. There are opportunities for us that the MAX can’t fulfill.”

    https://www.flightglobal.com/fleets/icelandair-seals-airbus-shift-with-a321xlr-order/154020.article

    Icelandair has firmed its April preliminary commitment for up to 25 Airbus A321XLRs, while separately leasing four A321LRs from SMBC Aviation Capital

  11. Mexican airline Viva Aerobus to buy 90 Airbus A321neo planes

    https://www.reuters.com/business/aerospace-defense/mexicos-viva-aerobus-buy-90-airbus-a321neo-aircraft-2023-07-05/

    MEXICO CITY, July 5 (Reuters) – Mexican airline Viva Aerobus has signed a memorandum of understanding to purchase 90 Airbus (AIR.PA) A321neo aircraft, the carrier said on Wednesday, in a deal likely worth several billion dollars.

    The agreement brings Viva’s order book up to 170 Airbus aircraft, the carrier said in a statement, all part of the A320 family.

      • Bryce, Bryce, Bryce,

        …Then a few years ago Airbus got caught for corruption. This was noticed by the acaparition a little too noticed in the market

        The USA asked Airbus to pay a fine, didn’t it? Come on, be objective for once it will change you a little…lol…

      • (!) Little historical reminder of which many know the basis

        -> 1994 was still the year when the dying Mc Donnel Douglas was still competing. It is also the incompetence of Mc Donnel Douglas which made Airbus rise to the top. The solution will never have been the Big Jumbo-jet MD12X or any other extension of the popular Tri-Engine, but the launch of a brand new narrowbody from 1990-1991 to counter the A320 which had already crashed twice and the 737 which was already aging before the launch of the NG (NeXtGen) in 1993 could have changed the fate of Mc Donnel Douglas which suffered from bean counters who saw no importance in the civil aircraft market and not understood the importance of the commercial sector since its merger at the end of the 60s…

        Mc Donnel Douglas experienced a slow agony of 30 years until 1997…

        Then we know the story. This is how Boeing is a bit today but is aware that BCA is naturally important and that this sector must be protected unlike Mc Donnel Douglas

        No doubt it would have the similar cockpit of the C17 Globmaster with fly-by-wire, where Boeing was absent and where Boeing and Airbus were busy designing the A330/A340 and 777, damn it!
        What were they doing ?!…✈️👎

  12. “Airbus reveals composition of IndiGo mega-order”

    “In the orders and deliveries breakdown for the month of June 2023 just been published by Airbus, the IndiGo order is revealed to consist of 125 A320neo and 375 A321neo aircraft.”

    “The emphasis on the larger A321neo is in tune with the increasing preference of low-cost airlines throughout the world for larger narrow body aircraft, to take advantage of the economies of scale that they offer.”

    https://www.aerotime.aero/articles/airbus-reveals-composition-of-indigo-mega-order

  13. “Airbus to handle some A380 repairs after wing-spar cracking”

    “Emirates, which has said the problem does not represent an immediate safety issue, said there would be minimal impact to its operations from the inspection and repair programme which is based on specified time limits since each wing was installed.”

    “We’re working closely with Airbus and our MRO (maintenance and repair) partners to fulfil the wings inspection and repair requirements for our A380s,” an airline spokesperson said.

    “”A large part of the work will be conducted at Emirates’ Engineering Centre and Airbus is providing us with supplementary MRO support in Toulouse.”

    “Ground time per jet will depend on findings and repairs, but is “estimated to average about 60 days,” the spokesperson added.

    “Emirates President Tim Clark told reporters last month that the first aircraft was being fixed and that the issue would have “very little impact on our operating profit”.”

    https://www.reuters.com/business/aerospace-defense/airbus-handle-some-a380-repairs-after-wing-spar-cracking-2023-07-07/

    ***

    One wonders if BA will do something similar for the shim issues on the in-service 787 fleet…

    • Lol ,,!

      The shim issue is not cracking issue
      “A hair thickness” is less outrageous as your last paragraph…

      Move along, nothing to see. Do not compare the 787 atthe A380 cracks problems, and the A350 CFRP skins, designs flaws

      In my humble opinion, if Airbus behaves like this it is because they want the EK A350 orders to be maintained. It’s not an Airbus charity, don’t worry 👍

  14. Re Icelandair

    Indeed, Iceland Air cannot wait. A few A321XLRs to replace its 757-200 and -300, that can be understood. The airline would risk waiting for Boeing far too long given the meager MOM market which is covered by the XLR for a limited number of 757s to be replaced, among other things…

  15. Qantas Starts Switchover To Airbus A220

    https://aviationweek.com/special-topics/crossover-narrowbody-jets/qantas-starts-switchover-airbus-a220

    “The A220…can operate double the range of the 717s, opening up new domestic and short-haul international routes,” Qantas Group CEO Alan Joyce said. At 6,300km the crossover jet’s range is almost double that of its predecessor and gives the European jet the capability of flying between any city pair in Australia.

    In Qantas service the A220 will be configured to seat 137 people (10 business, 127 economy), a 25% increase over the 717’s capacity of 110, with no reduction in space between seats.

    Additionally, the A220-300’s fuel burn is 28% lower per seat than that of the U.S. aircraft. Noise levels are “up to 50% lower” than the 717.

    • From that Seattle Times link:

      “..Halfway through the year, Airbus has delivered 316 commercial jets and won 1,044 net orders. Boeing has delivered 266 commercial jets and has won 415 net orders..”

      • And BA’s 266 delivieries didn’t generate a penny of earnings…

        • They’ll make it up in volume (according to some here). 😉

          2Q reports will be out soon..

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