Airbus has agreed to provide Spirit AeroSystems with $200 million in credit to help the financially embattled US supplier continue operating until the European airframer completes a partial acquisition of the aerostructures supplier later this year.
Wichita-based Spirit disclosed the fresh credit line, which will not bear interest, on 1 May when it reported that it lost $613 million in the first three months of 2025, continuing what has become a string of massive quarterly losses.
The credit deal was agreed on 28 April, with Spirit saying it will use the money to support its Airbus programmes.
The aerostructures provider has been bleeding cash as it edges closer to completing a deal that will see it acquired by Boeing. The US aircraft manufacturer is preparing to take over Spirit to help nurse its largest supplier back to financial and operational health.
As part of the acquisition, Airbus intends to take over Spirit’s production work for its products.
Spirit ended March with $220 in cash and cash equivalents, down from $537 million just three months earlier.
Cash advances received from customers – namely Airbus and Boeing – in 2024 and 2025 “provided essential operational liquidity” to Spirit, it says.
But the company needs more. “We will need to obtain additional funding to sustain operations, as we expect to continue generating operating losses for the foreseeable future,” Spirit says.
Spirit brought in $1.5 billion in first-quarter revenue, down 11% year on year.
During the period, Spirit recognised $293 million in forward losses resulting from “schedule changes, production performance and supply chain cost growth”. Of the $293 million, it attributes $90 million to its Airbus A350 work, $86 million to A220 work and $38 million to 787 work.
Additionally, Spirit reports a $47 million first-quarter charge due to “excess capacity”.
Spirit on 28 April reached a deal with Airbus covering its planned divestitures to the European firm as part of the Boeing acquisition.
Airbus agreed to pay $1 to acquire Spirit operations that produce components for its jets, including A220 pylon work in Wichita, A220 wing and mid-fuselage production in Belfast, A350 fuselage sites in North Carolina and France, A320neo-family work in Casablanca and a site in Subang, Malaysia.
However, Spirit is considering selling the A220 mid-fuselage work in Belfast and its Malaysia site to a third party, in which case Airbus would not acquire those operations.
When acquiring the Airbus production work, Airbus will also receive $439 million in cash from Spirit, according to the companies.
