France-based aircraft maker Airbus has reportedly alerted airlines to expect over a three-year delay for several deliveries due to continued supply chain disruptions, Reuters reported last week, citing industry sources. The aviation giant is planning to delay some deliveries to 2027-28 amidst mounting pressure to work toward its goal of delivering 75 of its flagship models each month. Other deliveries set for later in the decade are already being hit with six-month deferments, the sources said.

ICYMI- Earlier this year, Airbus postponed the roll-out of a new freighter version of its A350 jet — originally penciled in for a 2026 launch— by up to a year on the back of supply chain issues that have caused lags in deliveries of its wider A350 aircraft family.

It’s not just Airbus: Boeing has also been struggling with supply chain disruptions since the pandemic. The company especially saw a tough year in 2024 on the back of safety incidents, a company-wide strike, a lawsuit, rising operational costs, and production woes from major supplies, such as Spirit AeroSystems. US tariff plans are also expected to further shortages in spare parts.

DATA POINTS- Airbus delivered 71 jets in March, increasing total deliveries for 1Q 2025 to anestimated 136 jets, outperforming its rival Boeing which delivered a total of 130 commercial units in the same period.

US pauses tech exports to China: Washington has halted exports of certain US-made tech to China, including those related to jet engines and semiconductors, the New York Times reported last week, citing unnamed sources. The move marks the Trump administration’s retaliation against Beijing’s restrictionson critical minerals exports to the US, the sources said.

Aviation-related restrictions: The US Commerce Department suspended some licenses that allowed US firms to sell parts and tech services to the state-owned aerospace manufacturer Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China (COMAC), a source said. The suspension targets input that specifically goes into the production of COMAC's C919 aircraft — a model hoped to be on par with Boeing’s 737 and the Airbus A320. Beijing still depends heavily on planes made by Boeing and Airbus, the New York Times reported.

China’s Comac was reported in April to be stockpiling engines for dozens of planes, in a bid to hedge against trade uncertainty with the US and ensure the maintenance needs of local airlines could be met. At the time, Chinese officials were considering asking Airbus to supply new jets with an extra set of engines.

Weren’t things simmering down? This re-escalation comes weeks after the US and China agreed to a 90-day truce in their ongoing trade dispute, with the US significantly trimming down its tariffs on Chinese goods from a previous high of 145% to 30%, and China slimming down its tariffs on US imports from 125% to 10%.

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