Airbus has announced its highest-ever profits and a return to paying a dividend to shareholders, in a sign of the aerospace industry’s burgeoning recovery from the Covid pandemic. The European plane-maker reported a record net income for 2021 of €4.2bn (£3.5bn), in stark contrast to a steep €1.1bn loss in 2020, when the pandemic first hit. The company, which is headquartered in Toulouse, France, made revenues of €52bn, up from €50bn in 2020. The aerospace industry was one of the worst affected by the pandemic as travel restrictions led to a slump in income for its airline customers. Orders for new planes were among the first things they cancelled. Airbus cut 15,000 jobs in June 2020, including at its UK factory in north Wales, which makes wings, in response to what its chief executive, Guillaume Faury, described as the industry’s “gravest crisis”. Its US rival Boeing cut 30,000, in part reflecting the global grounding of its previous bestseller, the 737 Max, after two fatal crashes. Faury hailed the company’s “remarkable” full-year results on Thursday and said its cost-cutting had paid off as he planned the first shareholder payout in two years. He also highlighted defence, space and helicopter businesses that proved more resilient during pandemic lockdowns. “2021 was a year of transition, where our attention shifted from navigating the pandemic towards recovery and growth,” he said. “The strong financials reflect the higher number of commercial aircraft deliveries, the good performance of our helicopters and defence and space businesses, as well as our efforts on cost containment and competitiveness.” Airbus delivered 611 aircraft during the year, ahead of its target of 600, driven mainly by 483 deliveries of its single-aisle A320, its rival to the Boeing 737. Boeing managed 340 during the year, although it delivered slightly more than Airbus in January 2022 as it looked to renew its previously close rivalry. Airbus said it expected to increase production during 2022 to 720 planes, in an outlook that “assumes no further disruptions to the world economy, air traffic” or internal setbacks. It did not raise its production target for the A320 above the 65 previously announced but said it was talking to its suppliers about raising the rate. Allegra Dawes, a senior analyst at Third Bridge investment group, said she expected Airbus to “dominate the crucial narrow body market in the coming years as the 737 Max trails Airbus’s offerings in both capability and orders”. She added: “Investors will be watching the progress Airbus has made towards achieving its ambitious targets for production ramp up over the coming years. The company has called on suppliers to prepare for a production rate of 70 A320 aircraft per month by 2024. It will be a significant challenge for a weakened supply chain.”