Airbus will cut aircraft production by a third due to coronavirus
European aerospace concern Airbus SE has decided to cut production by a third amid restrictions on international flights due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Company reported , which will reduce the production of narrow-body Airbus A320 aircraft from 60 to 40 units per month.
Production of Airbus A350 wide-body aircraft will be cut from about 10 units to six per month. The company will also produce only two aircraft of the A330 family per month, whereas initially it was planned to produce 40 such airliners annually.
Airbus Chief Executive Officer Guillaume Faury said the decision to cut production reflects the demand situation and that the company will take steps to conserve sufficient cash.
"We are reducing production and ensuring that our balance sheet is preserved, " he said.
At the end of March, Airbus withdrew its 2019 dividend offer and current year outlook due to uncertainty over the COVID-19 outbreak.