Airbus and Boeing Charter Giant Antonov Jet to Mitigate Supply Chain Delays

Airbus and Boeing have recently chartered one of the world's largest cargo planes, the Antonov An-124, to expedite shipments of crucial aerostructures, according to industry sources and regulatory filings. This unusual and costly measure highlights lingering vulnerabilities within the aerospace supply chain as manufacturers struggle to maintain production momentum.

A Sign of Supply Chain Strain

Planemakers typically rely on established sea and land freight networks to move large aircraft parts between global production sites. The decision to use air freight, particularly a massive aircraft like the An-124, indicates that standard logistics are insufficient to meet production timelines and that crucial buffer stocks are low.

While analysts note that aerospace supply chains have generally improved since the pandemic, these airlifts point to persistent pockets of stress. The added expense of such transport underscores the pressure on both companies to prevent delays that could disrupt assembly lines and affect aircraft delivery schedules.

Airbus Faces A350 Bottlenecks

For Airbus, the air charters are being used to transport parts for its A350 wide-body jetliner. According to two industry sources, this move is linked to issues at a former Spirit AeroSystems plant in Kinston, North Carolina, which Airbus acquired in December.

Ad

Sources indicated that what was previously a stable flow of parts by sea now requires air transport to prevent new delays. This follows a Reuters report in May that Airbus had warned some customers of new delays to A350 deliveries. An Airbus spokesperson acknowledged the use of Antonov jets and described the integration of the Kinston facility as a "complex multi-year journey."

Boeing Expedites 767 and 777 Parts

Boeing has also utilized the An-124 for its own production needs. In a June 22 letter to the U.S. Department of Transportation, the company confirmed it chartered the jet to transport two upper fuselage sections for the Boeing 767 from a Daher Aerospace factory in Florida to its plant in Everett, Washington.

Boeing stated the parts were "urgently required for the production of the 767" and that failing to airlift them would impose a "significant economic cost." The 767 airframe is currently used for U.S. military refueling tankers and commercial freighters. A Boeing spokesperson confirmed the company uses "a variety of transportation methods to maintain stability in our production."