Transat to lease aircraft short term due to Airbus delays

Transat’s ambitious plans for the summer are running into Airbus’ manufacturing travails, forcing the Canadian carrier to wet-lease aircraft to fulfill its summer schedule. Transat had expected to take delivery of two Airbus A321LR’s this summer, but deliveries are delayed due to supply-chain constraints at the European airframer, Transat CEO Annick Guerard said on the company’s April quarter earnings results. She declined to specify where the additional wet-leased aircraft will come from or how many, but said they will be sufficient to operate the carrier’s summer schedule. Transat has 10 A321LRs fleet now, and besides the two that have been delayed this year, expects a further five deliveries in 2023-2024. Guerard said. Guerard is the second airline CEO this week to comment on Airbus delays. Earlier in the week, Wizz Air CEO Jozsef Varadi noted that although the European discounter has sufficient lift for its schedule, “If you look at Airbus and Boeing, I mean there are strains in the system. They have issues with their own supply chains, and as a result, it is becoming increasingly difficult to get access to new aircraft for the next few years.” Airbus is ramping up production of its A320-family aircraft to 65 aircraft per month next year, with plans to increase that to 75 aircraft per month by 2025. Although Airbus CEO Guillaume Faury is confident the airframer can meet its targets, analysts have been skeptical and pointed to suppliers that have struggled to hire enough staff in tight labor markets in the US and Europe.<br/>