The world’s largest aircraft maker Airbus is expanding production of its popular medium-haul jets with an additional final assembly line in China. During the visit of French President Emmanuel Macron to Beijing, the relevant contract was signed on Thursday by the head of Airbus, Guillaume Faury.
Accordingly, the existing Airbus factory in Tianjin will be expanded with a second final assembly line. In this way, the group doubles its production capacity in the country. It builds the A320neo family of jets, the world’s best-selling aircraft type. Airbus opened its factory in Tianjin in 2008.
Hamburg remains the largest production location
The Dax Group builds these aircraft at four locations around the world. By far the most replicas are produced in Hamburg with four production lines, followed by Toulouse with two lines. Airbus also plans a second A320neo line in Mobile, Alabama. Along with the upcoming two lines in Tianjin, there should be ten around the world in the future.
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Due to the large number of orders, Airbus has recently been unable to keep up with production. Last year, the manufacturer missed its planned deliveries, which were already cut, also because important parts were missing from suppliers and workers. In 2023, CEO Guillaume Faury recently expected permanent bottlenecks.
By 2026, the group plans to increase production of the A320neo family to a record level of 75 machines per month. An important market for the European manufacturer is China: last year, Chinese airlines ordered more than 300 Airbus aircraft. (dpa/mp)