Airbus faces slower September deliveries after A321neo fuselage defect, sources say
The flaw affects about 500 A321neo aircraft, roughly half already delivered and half still in production, Reuters reported.
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Airbus is on track for slower deliveries this month after a newly found fuselage defect on its A321neo, according to sources.
Airbus said on September 25 that it had identified and contained a quality issue in the lower forward fuselage of the A321neo, and that the aircraft could keep flying because the flaw poses no safety risk, Reuters reported via the Manila Times. The issue involves a deviation in the surface coating applied to stringers, made by Airbus's in-house unit Stelia, which can reduce resistance to corrosion. The defect touches about 500 aircraft, roughly 250 already delivered and 250 still in production, and does not affect the longer-range A321XLR variant, the report said.
Airbus has told customers there is no immediate need for repairs, though European regulators may still order fixes within a set window, Reuters reported. Delta Air Lines, a US operator of the A321neo, said it was in continual contact with manufacturers and would act to meet or exceed any recommendations from Airbus or directives from regulators.
It is the second fuselage-related quality problem on the A321neo in nine months, after Airbus reported improperly fabricated fuselage panels in December 2025 that delayed deliveries for several months, Reuters reported. Airbus had logged 475 deliveries through the end of August against a full-year target of 850 to 890 aircraft, and The Air Current reported that Airbus did not expect the latest lapse to change that guidance. The new defect shows the problem is already reaching output rather than sitting as a rework risk on paper, and coming after a separate issue with the A330neo tail, it adds to a pattern of manufacturing lapses that makes Airbus's year-end delivery target harder to reach.