Airbus has taken a step forward with its Final Assembly Line in Tianjin, China – delivering the first Airbus A321neo completed at that facility.
The first A321neo completed in China was delivered to Juneyao Air. The aircraft is powered by Pratt & Whitney GTF engines and features 207 seats, 8 in Business and 199 in Economy class.
Its delivery flight is to use a ten per cent Sustainable Aviation Fuel blend in support of the green aviation strategy in China.
Airbus has multiple final assembly lines around the world, then based in Hamburg, Germany; Toulouse, France; Tianjin, China; and Mobile, United States. The Final Assembly Line in Tianjin was the first Airbus commercial aircraft assembly line outside Europe, which was commissioned in 2008.
In the same year, the first aircraft sections arrived on site. Since its first A320 delivery in 2009, Airbus’ FAL in Tianjin has delivered more than 600 aircraft over its 14 years in operation.
With the conversion of the Tianjin facility last year, and with the newest facility about to complete its transformation in Toulouse, the global industrial system will be fully A321-capable, creating flexibility and agility to meet Airbus’ ramp-up objectives and the rising market success of the A321 model.
In Quotes
George Xu, Airbus Executive Vice President and Airbus China CEO said
“Since we announced the commissioning of the first A321 aircraft at FAL Tianjin last November, the relevant final assembly activities and tests went on smoothly, showcasing the maturity of FAL Tianjin to quickly adapt to new products,”
“The successful delivery of the first A321 aircraft enables Airbus to honour the popularity of the aircraft for the China market and beyond – and the consistent trust and support from our customers. Airbus continues to expand and enhance its comprehensive cooperation with China’s aviation industry, underlining its long-term commitment to China to ensure customer proximity while supporting the global commercial aircraft production ramp-up.”
The ability to scale
In many respects, it is a major demonstration of how Airbus can flex its manufacturing abilities, by dropping in a Final Assembly line where it is needed (or politically viable to a facility like this) and scaling it to the market’s needs.
And it shows they can scale beyond their traditional homes Toulouse and Hamburg – and constantly produce products for their customers who are chasing lower costs and lower emissions to fulfil their ESG goals.
With the massive orders from China recently, this Final Assembly Line will be busy with new A320neo and A321neo for a long time to come.
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