image: Airbus
Airbus announced that quality issues on the horizontal tailplane of the A330-900 resulted in no deliveries for the aircraft in June and July, 2026, with deliveries resuming in August. With Airbus currently producing 3-4 aircraft per month, with plans to rise to 5 per month in 2029, the quality problems could contribute to the likely shortfall in full year deliveries for Airbus in 2026. This comes after several new orders for the model this year in a resurgence of the A330 market.
Lack of Transparency from Airbus
The issue on the horizontal tailplane was not disclosed in detail, apart from saying that the problem was isolated, the root cause identified, and that A330-900 deliveries have resumed. Our production and deliveries tracker shows 16 A330s produced year to date, with 10 delivered to customers. It is likely that additional actions and corrective actions will be completed on the 6 undelivered airplanes, and that deliveries may rise in September.
The Bottom Line
Airbus has not disclosed details regarding the 6 undelivered aircraft, particularly whether they required only inspections or corrective actions. The company also did not provide a time line regarding when those aircraft will be delivered to customers.
If the issues can be resolved quickly, the aircraft may be delivered quickly, but if not, this is another issue that could exacerbate the engine and other supply-chain shortfalls that will likely result in Airbus missing its delivery guidance, again, in 2026.
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