Update: Airbus launches new assembly line in China

TIANJIN, Oct. 22 (Xinhua) -- Airbus on Wednesday inaugurated its latest Final Assembly Line (FAL) for A320 family aircraft in the northern Chinese port city of Tianjin, the second of its kind in both China and Asia as a whole.

The new facility will double the A320 family's final assembly capacity in China, demonstrating Airbus' confidence in the country's thriving civil aviation market, resilient supply chain and favorable business climate.

Via the FAL, the A320 planes will be assembled from large components like fuselage sections and wings, painted, tested and delivered to customers in China and beyond, said Airbus CEO, Guillaume Faury.

Preparations to assemble the first plane are underway.

"We welcome the addition of Tianjin's second line to our global production system, as it provides us with the necessary flexibility and capacity to deliver on our plan to assemble 75 A320 family aircraft per month in 2027," Faury said at the inauguration ceremony.

To date, Airbus' A320 family production network has expanded to 10 FALs -- four in Germany, two in France, two in the United States, and two in China, with the assembly capacity in Tianjin set to contribute 20 percent of the company's total globally.  ■