Airbus to continue controlling A220 jet costs, support supply chain

Airbus SE will continue taking steps to control the costs of its loss-making A220 jet, while also supporting its supply chain, the president of the company's Canadian division said on Wednesday.

Airbus is trying to reduce the production costs of its smallest jet, but faces broader industry pressure from suppliers that want to pass on their own higher costs from raw materials and labor.

“Cost optimization on a program never stops. I’m not going to pretend that this is going to stop on the A220,” Airbus Canada CEO Benoit Schultz told Reuters in an interview on the sidelines of the Paris Airshow.


The A220 is jet is produced both in the Canadian province of Quebec and in Mobile, Alabama.

“Quality is of course, first and foremost. No question to this. That’s very, very clear. But quality cannot come at the cost of compromising the efficiency of the aircraft on the cost side.”