Airbus Has a Queue of 8,700 Planes to Build. It Can't Get Enough Engines to Build Them.

Most aviation supply chain stories begin and end with Boeing. This one doesn't. The world's largest planemaker is running into a bottleneck that no amount of demand can fix, and the effects are already landing on airlines, lessors, and the manufacturers that sit behind them.

Airbus reported a sharp decline in first-quarter earnings this week. Adjusted operating profit fell 52% year-on-year to 300 million euros, well below analyst expectations. The world's largest planemaker delivered 114 commercial aircraft during the quarter, down 16% from 136 a year earlier — and trailing Boeing, which delivered 143 aircraft over the same period. 

The cause is not demand. Airbus carries a backlog of 8,754 aircraft, including 7,163 A320-family jets. The cause is engines — specifically, the absence of them.

The Pratt & Whitney problem

Airbus has issued a sharp public rebuke of Pratt & Whitney, one of its largest suppliers, citing significant shortages of the PW1100G geared turbofan engine that powers the A320neo. The dispute centers on Pratt's decision to send more engines to airlines to help keep existing aircraft flying, rather than providing turbines for new deliveries. 

Airbus has initiated legal action over the dispute. CEO Guillaume Faury cited Pratt & Whitney's "failure to commit" to ordered engine volumes as the direct cause of the company's reduced 2026 delivery guidance of 870 aircraft — well below the 900-plus that analysts had forecast. 

The fallback option is also constrained. Airbus is encountering significant difficulties securing additional CFM International Leap engines to offset the Pratt shortfall. CFM is currently prioritizing support for its in-service fleet, limiting its capacity to increase supply beyond previously agreed levels. As a result, Airbus may be forced to park fully assembled aircraft awaiting engines — effectively grounded gliders — throughout 2026. 

Why this is not just an aviation story

More than 800 PW1000G-powered jets were grounded or stored globally by late 2025, pitting airlines against Airbus in a three-way competition for the same scarce engine supply. Airlines that cannot take delivery of new aircraft keep older, less fuel-efficient fleets flying longer. They defer route expansion and reduce capacity flexibility. For freight operators relying on belly cargo on those same narrowbody routes, availability tightens and rates rise.

The repercussions extend beyond Airbus. Airlines including Air Baltic have experienced fleet groundings due to engine maintenance issues, while Aegean Airlines abandoned plans to launch flights to India, attributing the decision to delays in receiving A321XLR aircraft caused by engine shortages. 

The exposure for European and Asian companies

Airbus has had to trim its aircraft-delivery goal in 2022, 2024, and 2025 because of supply-chain snarls. This is not a new pattern — but the legal escalation with Pratt & Whitney marks a new intensity. Airbus shares are down more than 16% since the start of the year. 

For supply chain professionals, the signal is this: when the world's largest aircraft manufacturer cannot get engines for planes that are already assembled, the delivery timelines your logistics and freight planning depend on are built on a thinner foundation than the order books suggest.