Airbus Gives Carriers Two Years to Fix A321neo Coating Defect as September Slips
Published on 09/29/2026 at 02:40 | Editorial boerse-global.de
Airbus has handed airlines a two-year window to complete remedial work on roughly 500 A321neo jets affected by a coating defect, according to Reuters, with each aircraft expected to spend up to nine days in the shop. The European planemaker confirmed on Friday that about 250 of the affected planes are in active service and a further 250 are still moving through production.
The company has stressed that the flaw is contained, that a repair procedure is already in place, and that flight safety is unaffected. Attention has now turned to the supply chain: a joint probe by Airbus and defence group Leonardo is focused on Italian supplier TESI, a Leonardo subcontractor, Reuters reported.
Up to 20 Jets Pushed Into the Fourth Quarter
The knock-on effect is already visible in September's delivery schedule. Citing industry sources, Reuters said as many as 20 A321neo aircraft will slip into the fourth quarter — a period that is traditionally the busiest stretch of the year for aircraft handovers. Loading additional jets into those final three months tightens the logistical squeeze at final assembly plants.
Even so, management has stood by its full-year guidance, keeping its target of around 870 commercial aircraft deliveries for 2026 unchanged.
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Toulouse and Tianjin Add Capacity for the Ramp-Up
Airbus is pressing ahead with industrial expansion to support that volume. On 15 September the group opened a new integrated delivery centre for the A320 family in Toulouse, spanning 35,000 square metres with 16 customer handover positions. A day later, on 16 September, China Eastern Airlines took delivery of an A320neo — the first aircraft to leave the newly built second final assembly line at the company's Tianjin site.
Buyback Runs Alongside the Rework
On the capital markets side, Airbus disclosed on Monday that it had repurchased 975,000 of its own shares between 21 and 25 September. The stock is intended to cover employee share ownership and share-based compensation programmes.
The Airbus share closed Monday's session at EUR 194.32, up 0.3%, still trading below its 50-day moving average of EUR 203.20. In today's trading the stock was steady at EUR 194.30.
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Portugal Eyed for a Eurofighter Bid
Beyond its civil business, Airbus is preparing an unsolicited offer to Portugal for the Eurofighter Typhoon, timed for late October or early November. Lisbon is currently weighing options to replace its existing F-16 fleet over the medium term.
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