Airbus SE is a European[7] multinational aerospace corporation. Airbus designs, manufactures and sells civil and military aerospace products worldwide and manufactures aircraft in Europe and various countries outside Europe. The company has three divisions: Commercial Aircraft (Airbus S.A.S.), Defence and Space, and Helicopters, the third being the largest in its industry in terms of revenues and turbine helicopter deliveries.[8] As of 2019, Airbus is the world's largest airliner manufacturer.[9]
The company's main civil aeroplane business is conducted through the French company Airbus S.A.S.,[10] based in Blagnac, a suburb of Toulouse, with production and manufacturing facilities mostly in the European Union and the United Kingdom but also in China, the United States and Canada. Final assembly production is based in Toulouse, France; Hamburg, Germany; Seville, Spain; Tianjin, China; Mobile, United States; and Montreal, Canada.[11] The company produces and markets the first commercially viable digital fly-by-wire airliner, the Airbus A320,[12][13] and the world's largest passenger airliner, the A380. The 6,000th aircraft, an A380, was delivered to Emirates on 19 January 2010,[14][15] while its 10,000th aircraft, an A350-900ULR, was delivered to Singapore Airlines on 14 October 2016.[16][17][18] The 12,000th aircraft, an A220, was delivered to Delta Air Lines on 20 May 2019.[19] By October 2016, the global Airbus fleet have performed more than 110 million flights, totalling over 215 billion kilometres and carrying 12 billion passengers.[20]
Airbus's registered headquarters is in Leiden, Netherlands, but its head office is located in Toulouse, France.[21] The 'SE' in its corporate name means it is a societas Europaea, which enables it to be registered as European rather than national corporation. Its shares are traded in France, Germany and Spain. The company is led by CEO Guillaume Faury and is a component of the Euro Stoxx 50 stock market index.
Products
Civilian
The Airbus product line started with the A300 in 1972, the world's first twin-aisle, twin-engined aircraft. A shorter, re-winged, re-engined variant of the A300 is known as the A310.
Building on its success, Airbus launched the A320, the first commercial jet to use a digital fly-by-wire control system. The A320 has been, and continues to be, a major commercial success. The A318 and A319 are shorter derivatives with some of the latter under construction for the corporate business jet market as Airbus Corporate Jets. A stretched version is known as the A321. The A320 family's primary competitor is the Boeing 737 family.[27]
The longer-range widebody products— the twin-jet A330 and the four-engine A340— have efficient wings, enhanced by winglets. The Airbus A340-500 has an operating range of 16,700 kilometres (9,000 nmi), the third longest range of any commercial jet after the Boeing 777-200LR (range of 17,446 km or 9,420 nautical miles)[28] and the Airbus A350-900ULR (range of 18,000 km or 9,700 nautical miles).[29]
All Airbus aircraft developed since then have cockpit systems similar to the A320, making it easier to train crew. Production of the four-engine A340 was ended in 2011 due to lack of sales compared to its twin-engine counterparts, such as the Boeing 777.[30]
Airbus is studying a replacement for the A320 series, tentatively dubbed NSR, for "New Short-Range aircraft".[31][32] Those studies indicated a maximum fuel efficiency gain of 9–10% for the NSR. Airbus however opted to enhance the existing A320 design using new winglets and working on aerodynamical improvements.[33] This "A320 Enhanced" should have a fuel efficiency improvement of around 4–5%, shifting the launch of an A320 replacement to 2017–2018.
On 24 September 2009, the COO Fabrice Bregier stated to Le Figaro that the company would need from €800 million to €1 billion over six years to develop the new aircraft generation and preserve the company technological lead from new competitors like the Chinese Comac C919,[34] scheduled to operate by 2015–2020.[35]
In July 2007, Airbus delivered its last A300 to FedEx, marking the end of the A300/A310 production line. Airbus intends to relocate Toulouse A320 final assembly activity to Hamburg, and A350/A380 production in the opposite direction as part of its Power8 organization plan begun under ex-CEO Christian Streiff.[36]
Airbus supplied replacement parts and service for Concorde until its retirement in 2003.[37][38]
| Aircraft | Description | Seats | Max | 1st flight | Production ceased |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A220 | 2 engines, single aisle, originally Bombardier CSeries | 108–130 | 133–160 | 2013-09-16 | |
| A300 | 2 engines, twin aisle | 228–254 | 361 | 1972-10-28 | 2007-03-27 (561 built) |
| A310 | 2 engines, twin aisle, modified A300 | 187 | 279 | 1982-04-03 | 1998-03-27 (255 built) |
| A318 | 2 engines, single aisle, shortened 6.17 m from A320 | 107 | 132 | 2002-01-15 | 2013-12-31 (80 built) |
| A319 | 2 engines, single aisle, shortened 3.77 m from A320 | 124 | 156 | 1995-08-25 | |
| A320 | 2 engines, single aisle | 150 | 186 | 1987-02-22 | |
| A321 | 2 engines, single aisle, lengthened 6.94 m from A320 | 185 | 240 | 1993-03-11 | |
| A330 | 2 engines, twin aisle | 246–300 | 406–440 | 1992-11-02 | |
| A340 | 4 engines, twin aisle | 239–377 | 377–440 | 1991-10-25 | 2011-11-10 (380 built)[30] |
| A350 | 2 engines, twin aisle | 270–350 | 475 | 2013-06-14 | |
| A380 | 4 engines, twin aisle, double deck | 555 | 853 | 2005-04-27 | 2022-01-01 (251 built)[39] |
Airbus Corporate Jets markets and modifies new aircraft for private and corporate customers. It has a model range that parallels the commercial aircraft offered by the company, ranging from the A318 Elite to the double-deck Airbus A380 Prestige. Following the entry of the 737 based Boeing Business Jet, Airbus joined the business jet market with the A319 Corporate Jet in 1997. Although the term Airbus Corporate jet was initially used only for the A319CJ, it is now often used for all models, including the VIP widebodies. As of December 2008, 121 corporate and private jets are operating, 164 aircraft have been ordered, including an A380 Prestige and 107 A320 family Corporate Jet.[40]
In September 2014, Aerion partnered with Airbus (mainly Airbus Defence)[41] to collaborate on designing the Aerion AS2, a supersonic 11-seater private business jet, hoping for a market entry in 2021.[42] Airbus was replaced with Lockheed Martin in 2017.[43]
Consumer products
In June 2013, Airbus announced that it was developing a range of "smart suitcases" known as Bag2Go for air travellers, in conjunction with luggage-maker Rimowa and IT firm T-Systems.[44][45] The cases feature a collection of built-in electronic gadgets which communicate with a smartphone app and with the IT systems of the airline, to assist the traveller and improve reliability and security of baggage handling. Gadgets include a weighing scale and a location tracker, using GPS for location tracking, RFID for identification, and a SIM card for messaging.[46][47] Since then, similar products have been announced by other companies.
Military
In the late 1990s, Airbus became increasingly interested in developing and selling to the military aviation market. It embarked on two main fields of development: aerial refuelling with the Airbus A310 MRTT (Multi-Role Tanker Transport) and the Airbus A330 MRTT, and tactical airlift with the Airbus A400M Atlas.
In January 1999 Airbus established a separate company, Airbus Military SAS, to undertake development and production of a turboprop-powered tactical transport aircraft, the A400M.[48][unreliable source?][49] The A400M is being developed by several NATO members, Belgium, France, Germany, Luxembourg, Spain, Turkey, and the UK, as an alternative to relying on foreign aircraft for tactical airlift capacity, such as the Ukrainian Antonov An-124 Ruslan[50] and the American C-130 Hercules.[51][52] The A400M project has suffered several delays;[53][54] Airbus has threatened to cancel the development unless it receives state subsidies.[55][56]
Pakistan placed an order for the Airbus A310 MRTT in 2008, which will be a conversion of an existing airframe as the base model A310 is no longer in production.[57] On 25 February 2008 Airbus won an order for three air refuelling MRTT aircraft, adapted from A330 passenger jets, from the United Arab Emirates.[58] On 1 March 2008 a consortium of Airbus and Northrop Grumman had won a $35 billion contract to build the new in-flight refuelling aircraft KC-45A, a US built version of the MRTT, for the USAF.[59] The decision drew a formal complaint from Boeing,[60][61] and the KC-X contract was cancelled to begin bidding afresh.[62][63]
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