CBI member, Airbus has announced that it has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with China’s state-owned, China Aviation Industry Corporation to expand and increase investment in China over the next decade.
The MoU was signed on Wednesday at the China International Import Expo., and sets out how Airbus will shift its manufacturing of the A330 widebody aircraft in Tianjin to focus on the A350 aircraft, with the first A350 expected to roll off the production line in Tianjin in 2021.
Besides the Tianjin A350 final assembly line, assembly lines of Airbus aircraft in Europe will also increase production, to six aircraft per month for the China market by the end of the year, a 50% increase compared to the text of Airbus’s original MoU.
Guillaume Faury said: “[Airbus] have developed strongly and positively in China. Airbus is one of the most deeply involved original equipment manufacturers that are in cooperation with China, and we will continue to invest.”
Airbus now takes about 50% of market share in China, compared with just 9% in 1996. In addition to manufacturing aircraft, Airbus also manages an Airbus Engineering Centre in Beijing and a Shenzhen-based China Innovation Centre, pioneering research into intelligent air-borne solutions to city navigation.
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