The CEO of Airbus, Guillaume Faury, has warned staff in an internal letter, seen by Reuters, that the company must be ready to adapt to worsening geopolitical risks, after trade tensions between the U.S. and China caused “significant” logistical and financial damage in 2025.
The internal memo was reportedly circulated last week and was disclosed by Reuters on Sunday, Jan. 25.
What else did the letter say?
Although Faury did not name the specific reasons for concern, the warning to his staff came as tensions rose between the U.S. and its European NATO allies over Greenland.
In the internal memo, according to Reuters, Faury said:
“The beginning of 2026 is marked by an unprecedented number of crises and by unsettling geopolitical developments. We should proceed in a spirit of solidarity and self-reliance.”
The executive added that trade pressure had already resulted in “significant collateral damage, logistically and financially” as the aircraft manufacturer’s supply chain is spread across several countries. Faury further stated:
“The industrial landscape in which we operate is sown with difficulties, exacerbated by the confrontation between the U.S. and China,”
In April 2025, the extensive tariffs announced by U.S. President Donald Trump significantly impacted imports of Chinese products, prompting China to restrict exports of rare earth minerals.
The Trump administration then temporarily froze the exports of engines and other aircraft parts to China, components needed for the assembly of Airbus jets in the Asian country.
The French-based aircraft maker opened its second Final Assembly Line in China last October, dedicated to the production of the A320-family. Airbus also has two Final Assembly Lines in the U.S., with the remaining six located in Germany and France.
Learning from the November recall
The internal memo mentioned the major recall of over 6,000 of its A320-family aircraft, the company’s biggest ever recall, after an incident involving corrupted data, which required a software update.
Faury said it was “imperative” to learn from the incident and that Airbus “must be more rigorous in managing our systems and products in general.”
Problems in the post-pandemic supply chain, despite improvements, were also brought up by Faury:
“Our most serious difficulties have been with the Pratt & Whitney and CFM engines,”
He added that Airbus would focus on the supply chain’s bottom line for the rest of the decade, predicting that the 2030s would be dominated by the development of an A320’s successor to begin service in the “latter part of the decade”.
What do you think of this warning to Airbus staff by the company’s CEO? Share your thoughts in the comments.
