Airbus Jan-April deliveries up 25% as some markets reopen

Airbus delivered 45 jets in April, bringing its total so far this year to 170 - up 25% from the same period of 2020 when airlines were reeling from the first shock of COVID-19. April deliveries trebled compared to the same period a year earlier, but slipped from 72 in March, company data showed. US and Chinese domestic markets have seen a surge in travel as vaccinations widen and Britain said on Friday it would cautiously allow international travel to resume. But a humanitarian crisis in India caused by a surge of coronavirus infections has caused air travel in another key Airbus market to plummet even as some deliveries continue. Airbus plans to increase production of medium-haul jets from Q3, partially restoring cuts sparked by COVID-19. While deliveries have recovered faster than some experts anticipated, they have not kept pace with Airbus' current production rates of just over 50 aircraft a month, suggesting additions to an end-year surplus of almost 100 undelivered jets. Airbus may be storing jets in anticipation of higher deliveries this year, Agency Partners analyst Sash Tusa wrote. An Airbus spokesman noted that it had stated that its deliveries would not be linear, but had kept targets unchanged.<br/>