Air Lease ( NYSE: AL ) on Thursday said deliveries of airplanes weren’t improving as manufacturers cope with shortages of workers and parts.
"Last year, we had delays on some aircraft that were like two to three months. And we had delays on [an Airbus] A321neo that was nine months,” Steven Udvar-Hazy, executive chairman of the aircraft leasing company, said during a call with investors . “I can't give you a mathematical average but it's certainly worse than three months and it's not getting any better."
Air Lease ( AL ) is among the companies that are seeking to expand their fleets as air travel rebounds from the steep drop at the onset of the pandemic. The health crisis has had a lingering effect on the supply chains for plane makers such as Boeing ( NYSE: BA ) and Airbus ( OTCPK:EADSF ).
“Boeing ( BA ) and Airbus ( OTCPK:EADSF ) have both just recently announced hiring campaigns for tens of thousands of new production employees though clearly getting these new staff hired and trained will take time,” John Plueger, CEO of Air Lease said during the call. “We remain skeptical that Airbus ( OTCPK:EADSF ) and Boeing ( BA ) will meet their aspirational production rate goals over the next two to three years.”
Airbus ( OTCPK:EADSF ) earlier Thursday said it had slowed the growth in output of its best-selling single-aisle planes. The day before, a Boeing ( BA ) executive said the supply chain was still a constraint.
The delays have forced some airlines to extend their leases for an average of three years, Plueger said.
Air Lease ( AL ) reported revenue growth of 0.7% from a year earlier to $601.6 million in Q4, beating estimates by $9.9 million.
Its net income of $134.9 million, or $1.21 a share, slipped 5.2% from $142.3 million, or $1.24 a share, a year earlier. The results beat analyst estimates of $1 a share.
Air Lease ( AL ) fell 6.2% to $41.72 a share by 10:46 a.m. ET.
Earlier Thursday, analysts at Morgan Stanley published a report that showed suppliers of airplane parts were concerned about shortages.
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Air Lease says airplane deliveries aren’t improving