Airbus profit taking off

Airbus Group on Friday reported decent half-year results supported by improved operational performance in the first six months of the year.

Bottom-line income soared by 34 percent as compared with the same period a year earlier, with net profit coming in at 1.524 billion euros ($1.668 billion).

Group revenues jumped by 6 percent year-on-year to 28.9 billion euros, with almost 5 billion euros generated through the company's defense segment.

Rising revenues reflected a strong delivery mix and a stronger US dollar, Airbus noted in a press release Friday.

Rosy outlook

The company pointed out that the industrial ramp-up of its wide-body A350 XWB program was gaining traction, with Vietnam Airlines becoming a second operator in June after Qatar Airlines.

Airbus conceded there had been flight test interruptions with regard to its A320neo, but added the delivery stream was expected to commence later this year, while the A380 program was reported to be on track for breakeven by the end of 2015.

"The half-year underlying results reflect our continued focus on program execution and operational efficiency," Airbus Group CEO Tom Enders said in a statement.

"We continue to see healthy commercial momentum across the portfolio as shown by the major contracts at June's Paris Air Show."

The European plane maker said it expected the world economy and air traffic to grow "in line with prevailing independent forecasts," assuming no major disruptions and enabling it to increase deliveries and revenues for the whole of 2015.