Airbus increased first half net income by 47% as higher commercial aircraft deliveries and stronger defence performance lifted revenue and operating profit.
The European aerospace group generated revenue of €33.18bn during the six months to 30 June, an increase of 12% from the corresponding period. Adjusted earnings before interest and tax rose by 24% to €2.73bn, while net income reached €2.24bn.
Commercial aircraft deliveries increased to 351 from 306 a year earlier. Airbus also recorded 821 net orders during the half, taking its backlog to 9,222 aircraft and providing several years of production visibility across its major programmes.
Guillaume Faury, Airbus chief executive, said: “Our good H1 results mainly reflect the higher level of commercial aircraft deliveries and strong performance in Defence and Space.”
Airbus Defence and Space generated revenue of €6.32bn, an increase of 9%, while adjusted operating profit rose to €487m from €265m. Order intake reached €9.29bn, compared with €5.08bn in the first half of the previous year, as European governments continued to increase defence and security expenditure.
The group retained its annual guidance of approximately 870 commercial aircraft deliveries, adjusted EBIT of around €7.5bn, and free cash flow before customer financing of approximately €4.5bn.
Free cash flow before customer financing remained negative at €1.17bn for the half, reflecting the working capital demands associated with higher production. Airbus ended June with net cash of €8.36bn, below its position at the end of 2025.
The earnings improvement demonstrates the financial effect of moving more completed aircraft through delivery, but industrial execution remains central to the outlook. Airbus has a large order book and sustained airline demand; converting those commitments into revenue depends on engines, aerostructures, cabin equipment, electronics, and thousands of smaller components arriving at the required pace.
Production systems are still recovering from disruption across the aerospace supply chain. Suppliers have had to rebuild workforces, restore inventories, finance higher activity, and manage inflation in specialist materials and labour.
Smaller manufacturers can encounter severe cash pressure when customers request faster output before corresponding payments are received. A recently established aerospace supply chain fund is intended to support production growth, reflecting the gap between strong demand and the working capital available to some component businesses.
Airbus’s negative first half cash flow illustrates the same dynamic at group level. Building aircraft requires substantial expenditure before customer payments are fully recognised, and rising output can temporarily consume cash even when profitability improves.
Inventory management and supplier reliability therefore remain as important as headline demand. Components arriving late can leave almost complete aircraft waiting on the ground, delaying revenue and increasing storage, rework, and financing costs.
The backlog offers considerable visibility, but it also raises customer expectations. Airlines have ordered new aircraft to reduce fuel consumption, replace older fleets, and expand capacity, often on the assumption that deliveries will fit within defined operating plans.
Delays can force carriers to extend leases, retain less efficient aircraft, or moderate route expansion. Those responses carry their own costs and can affect negotiations over future orders.
Defence and Space provides a second source of growth. European governments are increasing orders for military aircraft, satellites, secure communications, and related services as defence readiness and strategic autonomy receive greater funding.
That demand can support investment across engineering and manufacturing, but it also competes for specialist labour and supplier capacity with commercial programmes. Airbus must allocate resources across two expanding markets while maintaining programme discipline.
Commercial customers require dependable delivery schedules and cost control, while government contracts bring complex technical, security, and sovereign content requirements. Delays or overruns in either part of the group can absorb management attention and engineering capacity.
Currency movements and trade policy create additional uncertainty. Aircraft are sold globally, components cross several borders, and much of the industry’s commercial pricing is denominated in US dollars. Tariff changes or new supply requirements can affect costs even where final assembly remains in Europe.
Airbus’s first half results show that higher deliveries are producing stronger earnings, while the scale of the backlog confirms that demand is not the immediate constraint. The harder task is expanding industrial output consistently enough to support the retained target of approximately 870 aircraft this year without allowing quality, cash conversion, or supplier resilience to deteriorate.
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