Airbus Identifies Coating Defect in 500 A321neo Aircraft

Airbus identified a quality flaw involving an incorrectly applied anti-corrosion primer coating on fuselage stringers in the lower front section of approximately 500 A321neo aircraft. The defect affects 250 planes currently in service and 250 still in production. The company attributed the issue to its in-house unit Stelia Aerospace and a sub-contractor to the Italian supplier Leonardo.

Airbus maintains that the deviation is a quality issue rather than a safety risk, stating that aircraft can continue to operate. Affected planes require repainting of specific fuselage parts within two years, a process that does not require the disassembly of stringers. While customers are currently accepting deliveries without immediate repairs, European regulators may issue a formal directive for the work. Approximately a dozen aircraft operated by IndiGo are impacted, while Air India's fleet remains unaffected.

This is the second fuselage-related industrial problem for the A321neo in nine months, following defects with Spanish supplier panels reported last December. Airbus shares fell over 1% on Friday following the announcement. Although the company reaffirmed its 2026 delivery target of around 870 jets, the flaw has reportedly caused several months of delivery delays as Airbus attempts to scale narrowbody production to 75 aircraft per month.