Airbus faces delivery challenge, poised to win jet order race

Airbus must hand a record number of aircraft to customers in December to meet delivery goals, company data showed on Thursday, and is all but certain of winning an annual order race against Boeing. The planemaker has been facing production snags in its best-selling A321neo jet, due in part to the introduction of a complex new flexible cabin, but has said it is confident of meeting a goal of 860 jets in 2019, revised down from 880-890. To reach that target it must deliver 135 jets in December, beating a previous record of 127 December deliveries by 6%. Airbus delivered 77 aircraft in November to reach 725 for the year so far, according to Thursday’s progress report. Airbus has a track record of achieving a late surge in deliveries, though it is also working to spread deliveries more evenly over the year in future to smooth earnings and avoid quality problems that can creep in when it is working flat out. Whether or not it meets targets, Airbus is set to regain the crown as the world’s largest commercial plane producer this year as Boeing approaches nine months without deliveries of its 737 MAX, grounded after two crashes.<br/>