The European giant has made the changes in response to the current market environment
Airbus is set to increase the production rate of its flagship A320 programme more slowly than previously reported.
In response to the “market environment”, the manufacturer will gradually increase output from the current rate of 40 per month to 43 in the third quarter and 45 in Q4 during 2021.
This latest production plan represents a slower ramp-up than the previously anticipated 47 jets per month from July.
Meanwhile, the A220 monthly rate will increase from four to five airframes per month by the end of Q1 as previously forecast.
Widebody manufacturing is expected the remain stable at current levels, with monthly production rates of around five and two A350s and A330s, respectively.
In a statement, the firm said: “Airbus continues to monitor the market closely. With these revised rates, Airbus preserves its ability to meet customer demand while protecting its ability to further adapt as the global market evolves. Airbus expects the commercial aircraft market to return to pre-COVID levels by 2023 to 2025.”
Last year, the company managed to deliver 566 commercial jets to 87 different customers.
The total number of handovers was 34% lower than in 2019 and the busiest month was December, during which 89 aircraft were delivered.
The A320 Family dominated throughout the year with 446 examples making their way to customers around the world. The A350 was the next most popular with 59 of the widebody being delivered, while 38 A220s and just four A380s were handed over in 2020.
