Airbus increased its aircraft production in November, reaching 58 deliveries across 34 customers. This compares with deliveries of 36 aircraft in October and 40 in each of September and August. The airframer's data shows that total deliveries for the year stood at 518 at the end of November, indicating that the manufacturer would need to hand over 82 aircraft in December to reach its target of 600 deliveries in 2021. Credit Suisse analysis earlier this month suggested that meeting the annual target in itself may not be overly significant in the current environment. But they noted that a deviation from the target will likely raise further questions about the feasibility of Airbus's planned production ramp-up. Airbus plans to raise average monthly A320-family production from 40 to 45 by year-end, and to 65 by the second quarter of 2023. The European airframer previously said that it was also in talks with suppliers to enable a rate of 70 by the first quarter of 2024 and "investigating opportunities" to reach 75 by 2025. November deliveries comprised 25 A320neos, 18 A321neos, an A321ceo, seven A220-300's, four A330-900's, an A330-200 and two A350-900's. The A321ceo was delivered to Delta Air Lines and represented the last but one order in the US carrier's backlog for the variant. A further seven remaining A321ceo orders in Airbus' data are attributed to Iran Air. The single A330ceo was handed over to Airbus Space and Defence. Meanwhile, the airframer received 318 orders in November, of which 261 – or 82% – were for A321neo models. Indigo Partners ordered 255 A321neos at Dubai air show, for distribution across Wizz Air (75 A321neos and 27 A321XLRs), Frontier Airlines (91 A321neos); Volaris (39 A321neos) and JetSmart 23 (21 A321neos and two A321XLRs). Airbus booked the remaining six A321neo orders for UK carrier Jet2. The A320neo gained 24 orders. This included 11 commitments by new Italian carrier ITA Airways, which additionally ordered seven A220-100's and 10 A330-900's. EasyJet ordered 12 A320neos on 29 November, according to Airbus's data. Another single A320neo order came from a private customer. Nigerian operator Ibom Air ordered seven A220-100's and three -300's at Dubai air show. On 29 November, Airbus received an order for four A330-300s from an undisclosed customer. Another order booked in November for two A330-200's is attributed to Airbus Space and Defence. However, customers cancelled 75 orders last month, bringing Airbus net tally for the year so far to 368 orders. Cancellations included commitments for 10 A220-100s previously placed by an undisclosed customer. Some 52 A320neo orders were cancelled. This included a commitment for 28 A320neos from Mexican carrier Interjet, which suspended operations in 2020. An unidentified customer cancelled orders for 23 A320neos and 13 A321neos. Another private customer cancelled a single A320neo order. Airbus' 2021 net tally for the A320 family at the end of November comprised orders for 422 A321neos, two A319neos and 99 A320neo cancellations.

IATA director general Willie Walsh has accused governments of deliberately "hammering" the aviation industry with a "knee-jerk" reaction to Covid-19's Omicron variant. During one of the airline association's regular press briefings, Walsh on 8 December suggested that governments saw "hammering the airline industry" as a means of "sending a message to the wider population to follow their message." He argues that government decisions to reimpose travel restrictions have been taken with "no data" and are therefore unjustified. "Why should we tolerate our lives being restricted when there is no need for it?" he asks. Walsh is urging governments to adopt a co-ordinated approach in managing restrictions going forward, and to take action aimed at reducing the price of Covid-19 testing. Despite the disruption caused by Omicron, Walsh is assuming that it will be a "short-term" issue, saying: "I don’t think this will impact on longer-term forecasts."

Belarus has threatened countermeasures against airlines based in the European Union and UK, in response to proposed Western sanctions on the state linked to an ongoing stand-off over migration into the EU. "In response to the illegitimate restrictions on the Belarusian aviation industry, which are based on unfair competition, our country will take similar steps in relation to air carriers from the European Union and the United Kingdom," says the Belarusian foreign ministry in a 6 December statement. The threat follows the imposition earlier this month by European regulators of sanctions on an additional 17 individuals and 11 entities in Belarus, including Minsk-based airline Belavia. The carrier has said that the new restrictions have forced it to reduce its fleet to 15 aircraft, and to look at leasing aircraft from lessors based outside the EU. The US Department of the Treasury also announced on 2 December that it was designating 20 Belarusian individuals and 12 entities, and identifying three aircraft, as "blocked property". The Treasury said at the time: "This action is being taken in co-ordination with the EU, the UK and Canada, and reflects the United States' commitment to acting with its allies and partners to demonstrate a broad unity of purpose." Western lessors with exposure to Belavia include AerCap, Nordic Aviation Capital and Air Lease Corporation. SMBC Aviation Capital is understood to have terminated the lease for one Boeing 737 that it had placed with Belavia. The European Commission in November proposed the introduction of powers to blacklist Belarusian transport operators found to be involved in people trafficking or smuggling into the bloc. In its countermeasure decree, which the Belarusian government says will be signed "as soon as possible", the state says it has added "more people from the countries that systematically discriminate" against Belarus to its own travel blacklist. It says it will "strengthen economic integration with the Russian Federation, as well as build strong trade and economic ties with the EAEU [Eurasian Economic Union] and other partners". Belarus says its countermeasures are "reciprocal in nature", and "can be cancelled if the counterparties abandon the broken logic of the Cold War and return to constructive co-operation".