2010 total deliveries to match previous year's record level

Airbus will increase the monthly production rate for its single-aisle A320 Family from the current rate of 34 to 36, starting December 2010. The production rate for the long-range A330/A340 Family will be maintained at the current level of eight per month.

Airbus' decision to raise its single-aisle production rate is driven by the continuing demand for its eco-efficient aircraft and a record backlog in excess of some 2,300 A320 Family aircraft.

"Leading economic indices and business confidence indicators are showing an upward trend again. We see this reflected in the continuing solid demand for our eco-efficient products and our robust backlog. Thanks to our proactive order book management we have been able to keep production stable during the year of the downturn, but now it is definitely time to think ahead," said Tom Williams, Executive Vice President, Programmes. "Aviation is a long-term growth industry. With our prudent decision we will be ready when the market recovers."

Airbus delivered a total of 498 aircraft in 2009, including 402 A320 Family aircraft, both new company records for a single year. The company target for deliveries in 2010 is to remain at a similar level to 2009.

The A320 Family, which includes the A318, A319, A320 and A321, is recognised as the benchmark single-aisle aircraft family. More than 6,500 Airbus A320 Family aircraft have been sold and nearly 4200 delivered to more than 300 customers and operators worldwide, making it the world's best selling commercial jetliner ever

Airbus press release 9 March 2010

Airline to take full benefit of Airbus commonality

Airbus today delivered to Sichuan Airlines the very first widebody aircraft, an A330-200, to add capacity to its existing all-Airbus Single Aisle fleet. The A330 is the first of three brand new Airbus A330-200s that Sichuan Airlines has leased from the Netherland’s-based AerCap Aviation Solutions.



While expanding its regional and international network, Sichuan Airlines intends to compete on high density routes with the most modern and cost-effective widebody aircraft on the market. The fleet of A330s will be deployed on domestic trunk routes from the airline’s home base of Chengdu to major cities such as Beijing and Shenzhen; on regional routes within Asia and on international long haul routes from Chengdu to Europe. The A330s will be configured in a comfortable two-class lay-out with 36 first class and 209 economy seats.

This delivery comes as a key milestone for Sichuan Airlines after successfully operating A320 Family aircraft for the last 15 years. Airbus aircraft share a unique cockpit and operational commonality, allowing airlines to use the same pool of pilots, cabin crews and maintenance engineers, bringing operational flexibility and resulting in significant cost savings. Today, Sichuan Airlines operates 44 Airbus A320 Family aircraft (13 A319s, 21 A320s, 10 A321s).

"In the past decades, Sichuan Airlines has evolved from a regional airline to a national airline connecting Chengdu to all provinces across China as well as more than 20 popular tourist destinations. The reliable and efficient Airbus Single-Aisle aircraft were decisive in this success. It was then a natural choice for us to select the A330s to help us to become one of the top five Chinese airlines," said Mr. Lan Xinguo, Chairman of Sichuan Airlines.

"We are delighted to support the rapid expansion of our old friends at Sichuan Airlines. We believe the low operating cost and excellent cabin comfort of the A330s will be key ingredients for the airline's continuing success," said John Leahy, Airbus Chief Operating Officer Customers.

During its long standing relationship with Airbus, Sichuan Airlines has recorded a number of premieres in China. The airline was the first to introduce a fly-by-wire aircraft, an A320 in 1995, the first to operate an A321 and is flying the first A320 assembled at FALC in Tianjin. In order to operate the newly built A330 fleet in a more efficient and cost-effective way, Sichuan Airlines was also the first Chinese airline to sign for the Airbus Flight Hour Services (FHS), a customized service with strong support from Airbus’ worldwide customer services system.

Airbus press release 4 February 2010

First price rise in two years

Airbus has increased the list price of all its aircraft by an average of 5.8 per cent. The price increase is the first since January 2008, and applies for all new aircraft from the beginning of January 2010.

The price increases were calculated according to the Airbus standard escalation formula over the January 2008 to January 2010 period.

“We have tried to keep prices down for as long as we can,” said John Leahy, Chief Operating Officer, Customers. “However, even with record aircraft deliveries and impressive orders in recent years, the continuing strength of the Euro against the US Dollar and the ongoing financial challenges ahead have forced us to take action.”

An ongoing US Dollar weakness, an increased cost of materials as well as commodities are all factors in the decision.

In its 40 year history, Airbus has become the leading aircraft manufacturer with the most modern and comprehensive family of airliners on the market, ranging in capacity from 100 to more than 500 seats. In this time, Airbus has sold almost 9,500 and delivered over 6,000 aircraft since the first airliner entered service in 1974. Airbus’ backlog stands at almost 3,500 aircraft.

Airbus press release 29 January 2010

Adding flexibility to the fleet

Yemenia, the official carrier of the state of Yemen, based in Sanaa, has signed a firm contract to buy 10 A320 Family aircraft from Airbus. The agreement follows the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed at the Dubai air show.

The aircraft, seating 12 passengers in Business and 138 in Economy class, will replace Yemenia's existing fleet of Single Aisle and widebody aircraft, enhance and expand their regional services to Gulf States, Middle East, Africa, India and Southern European destinations, and help to stimulate economic growth in Yemen.

Captain Abdulkhalek Al-Kadi, Chairman and CEO of Yemenia said, "Our new A320s will share operational and maintenance commonality with our existing Airbus A330s and our future A350s. The increased efficiency of this integrated fleet will help us achieve our growth targets. The A320 will also enable us to redefine our services by offering our passengers the best cabin comfort in its class. Yemenia is taking this major decision to add a major Fleet modernisation leap. Very soon, we will have a total New Generation Fleet, which will strengthen our Competitiveness" Captain Alkadi added.

"The A320 is today's standard in the Single-Aisle sector and with continuous improvements we are strengthening the aircraft's leadership position. The A320 is already better by design and it keeps on getting better. Yemenia will benefit from Airbus' aircraft family concept which maximises maintenance and operational efficiency," said John Leahy, Airbus Chief Operating Officer, Customers.

Yemenia's choice further re-enforces the A320 as the aircraft of choice in the Middle East.

Yemenia's long haul fleet operate to destinations in Europe, the Middle East and Asia. During the 2007 Dubai airshow, Yemenia placed an order with Airbus for ten Airbus A350 XWB.

Airbus press release 21 January 2010

Certification on track for mid-March

The second A330-200F has made its first flight today. Powered by two Rolls-Royce Trent 700 engines, the aircraft undertook a routine three-hour production first test flight. There are now two A330-200F aircraft in the flight test programme.



This latest aircraft to fly, 'MSN1032', will contribute towards the overall A330-200F flight test programme totalling around 200 flight hours, and paving the way for certification in mid-March this year, followed by delivery of the type to launch operator, Etihad Crystal Cargo, in the summer.

MSN1032 is the first A330-200 Freighter to be fitted with a full courier section, comprising seating for six people; as well as a small galley and crew rest area. Development tasks for this aircraft will concentrate on equipment and furnishings as well as complementary 'systems' tests, including: communication; power distribution; air conditioning; smoke detection; oxygen; water; and waste.

Meanwhile, the initial A330-200F in the flight test campaign, 'MSN1004' which first flew in November 2009 powered by Pratt & Whitney PW4000 engines, has been successfully evaluating handling qualities, performance, as well as undertaking tests regarding the autopilot and autoland systems. MSN1004 is now embarking on cold-weather testing in Canada, and following that, the aircraft will carry out hot-weather trials in the Far-East.

The A330-200F features an optimised fuselage cross-section, offering flexibility to carry a wide variety of pallet and container sizes. The aircraft offers 30 per cent more volume than any freighter in its class, and is based on the proven, highly successful and technologically-advanced A330 platform, for which Airbus has over 1,000 orders and already more than 630 aircraft in service.

Airbus press release 20 January 2010