Airbus SE has named Matthieu Louvot as the new chief executive officer of its Helicopters division, effective April 1. Louvot, 48, joins from Airbus’s Defence and Space arm where he served as Chief Financial Officer for the past three years. In his new role, he will oversee a business that generated €7.2 billion in revenue last year and employs approximately 27,000 people across 80 production and service sites. Louvot will be tasked with accelerating the division’s return to profitability, improving operational efficiency in the Marignane final assembly line, and delivering on a backlog of nearly 500 rotorcraft orders, including H125 and H160 models.

Airbus has publicly flagged a shortfall in engine deliveries from Pratt & Whitney, the sole supplier for A320neo family powerplants, warning that unresolved volume commitments could constrain production rates. Pratt & Whitney has delivered 120 geared turbofan engines against Airbus’s expectation of 160 for the first quarter, creating a gap that risks delaying up to 20 single-aisle aircraft in Q2. Airbus management has indicated that, without a firm supply agreement for the remainder of the year, the company may need to revise its target of 720 jetliner deliveries in 2024 and could see increased inventory carrying costs if assembly lines are forced to pause.