The ongoing strike dispute at Boeing has not been resolved, which not only dealt a heavy blow to Boeing's revival plan, but also hindered the normal operation of the global aviation industry.
According to sources, Boeing's biggest competitor Airbus is facing the risk of component shortages for Spirit Aerosystems. Spirit was once a subsidiary of Boeing, mainly providing products for Boeing after the split. Boeing is planning to repurchase the company, but due to strike disputes, the matter has been repeatedly postponed.
On the other hand, due to Boeing's strike, Spirit's business has also been affected. It warned last month that Boeing may also be on vacation due to its inability to receive its components. This may lead to a slowdown in Spirit's production and hinder its delivery of the fuselage and front wing beams of the Airbus A350 aircraft, as well as the A220 wings.
Both Airbus' largest and smallest models of jet aircraft rely on Spirit to provide critical structural components. The industry points out that this is a series of supply chain problems causing trouble, which has already posed challenges to the growth of global air transportation.
Sources warn that these issues mean that airlines will face delivery delays for some aircraft, including the A350, next year due to longer delivery times for components, forcing aircraft manufacturers to deploy additional production plans to meet industry demand.
I'm afraid it's not a small trouble
According to sources, Airbus has intervened in the disruption of Spirit production by airlifting parts from Spirit's factory in Northern Ireland to meet the demand for the A220 wings of the small aircraft. These components were originally manufactured from Spirit's factory in North Carolina, USA.
Spirit responded that its production is still proceeding according to plan and will deliver the products purchased by Airbus according to the delivery schedule.
But there are also rumors that Airbus has sent employees to Spirit's factory in North Carolina to monitor production, which Spirit only refers to as routine inspections.
Airbus has consistently emphasized that the company is facing challenges in the supply chain, particularly in the aviation structure, and Spirit is one of these concerns. Airbus stated that it will strengthen its supply control capabilities in the weakest areas.
However, Bernstein analysts pointed out that the market is most concerned that Airbus may not need to solve the problem of one supplier, but rather the problem of multiple suppliers.