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Airbus executive sees disruptions continuing but getting

better

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Main bottlenecks are with aircraft engines, executive says

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Airbus signs deal with Taiwan's China Airlines for A350s

By Ben Blanchard

TAOYUAN, Taiwan, March 31 (Reuters) - Disruptions to the

supply chain that are delaying aircraft deliveries are lessening

and Airbus is getting much better at managing it, a

senior company executive said on Monday.

The European planemaker, which delivered 766 jets last year,

roughly in line with its target, has been facing industrial

delays due partly to problems in the aerospace supply chain,

which have also hampered the recovery of embattled U.S. rival

Boeing ( BA ).

Speaking to reporters in Taiwan, Airbus commercial aircraft

executive vice president of sales Benoit de Saint-Exupery said

it is taking a long time for the supply chain to get back on

track, with a lot of disruptions in many suppliers.

"We think that those disruptions are going to continue a

little bit longer unfortunately but we have a much better handle

(on it) and we are managing that supply chain with much more

anticipation than before thanks to the learning we had during

the pandemic," he said.

"I view it as getting better but it will take a bit longer

before it comes back to where it was before the pandemic."

Right now the main bottlenecks are engines, he said,

speaking at a hotel at Taiwan's main international airport in

Taoyuan.

"We're not getting the engines that we need to deliver the

aircraft."

De Saint-Exupery was in Taiwan to sign an order with the

island's larger carrier China Airlines for 10 Airbus

A350-1000s.

In December, China Airlines said it would split an order for

its long-haul fleet renewal between Boeing ( BA ) and Airbus and buy

freighters from the U.S. planemaker in a closely watched deal

worth almost $12 billion.

China Airlines said it would buy 10 Boeing 777-9 aircraft

and 10 Airbus A350-1000s as well as four 777-8 freighter

aircraft for $11.9 billion at list prices, with deliveries for

the new aircraft starting from 2029.

"We were competing for the entire order but we knew it was

going to be difficult," de Saint-Exupery told Reuters. "The

airline is a (Boeing) 777-300 operator so their decision has

some sense."

China Airlines Chairman Kao Shing-hwang said the new A350s,

which will complement its existing fleet of 15 the smaller

A350-900 model, would enable the carrier to add capacity on

popular long haul destinations like New York and London, adding

passenger and freight demand were both strong at present.

"I believe we'll get a great report card for both passengers

and freight" this year, Kao added.