Aerospace Manufacturing

Airbus to lead NATO next gen rotorcraft concept study

Airbus has been awarded a contract to lead a concept study for NATO's Next Generation Rotorcraft Capability (NGRC) project.

30th July 2024

Airbus A321XLR receives EASA type certification

The Airbus A321XLR powered by CFM LEAP-1A engines has received its Type Certification from the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA), preparing the way for the entry-into-service of the new aircraft at the end of the summer.

25th July 2024

Airbus adds London Gatwick to hydrogen hub network

Airbus has teamed up with London Gatwick, easyJet and Air Products, the world’s largest hydrogen supplier, to expand hydrogen capability and infrastructure in the UK as the manufacturer moves closer to its target of getting a hydrogen powered aircraft in the sky by 2035.

18th July 2024

Airbus signs AI collaboration for new unmanned Wingman aircraft

Airbus has signed an artificial intelligence (AI) agreement for its new unmanned Wingman aircraft, which was revealed as a 1:1 model at ILA Berlin.

6th June 2024

Airbus reveals unmanned wingman for manned fighter jets

Airbus will be presenting its new Wingman concept at the International Aerospace Exhibition ILA in Berlin.

4th June 2024

Airbus to build weather spacecraft Vigil

Airbus has been selected by the European Space Agency (ESA) to design and build the space weather forecasting satellite Vigil, the first operational mission in ESA’s Space Situational Awareness (SSA) Space Safety Programme (S2P).

22nd May 2024

Saudia Group orders 105 A320neo aircraft from Airbus

Saudia Group, represented by Saudia, the national flag carrier of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, and flyadeal, the group’s low-cost carrier, has signed a firm order for an additional 105 A320neo aircraft. The order comprises 12 A320neo and 93 A321neo aircraft. This increases Saudia Group’s Airbus aircraft order backlog to 144 A320neo family aircraft.

20th May 2024

Airbus climate monitoring satellite transported for launch

The Airbus-built EarthCARE (Earth Clouds, Aerosols and Radiation Explorer) spacecraft has left its assembly site in Germany and is now on its way aboard an aircraft to be launched in Vandenberg, California. EarthCARE is planned to be launched in May on a Falcon 9 rocket.

11th March 2024

Airbus reveals fully electric aircraft prototype

Airbus has revealed its fully electric CityAirbus NextGen prototype ahead of its maiden flight later this year.

7th March 2024

Airbus opens service centre in China dedicated to lifecycle of aircraft

The Airbus Lifecycle Services Centre (ALSC) has started its operations in Chengdu (China), offering solutions to manage the entire lifecycle of an aircraft.

24th January 2024

Airbus delivers first Toulouse FAL A321neo

Airbus has delivered its first Airbus A321neo assembled at its newest A320 Family Final Assembly Line (FAL) in Toulouse.

2nd January 2024

Historic Turkish Airlines deal signed for Airbus, Rolls-Royce

Airbus is to provide 220 aircraft to Turkish Airlines in a new deal worth billions in pounds to the UK.

21st December 2023

easyJet orders 157 A320neo Family aircraft

easyJet has confirmed a firm order for 157 additional A320neo family aircraft following shareholder approval. The firm order comprises 56 A320neo and 101 A321neo aircraft and also includes the upsizing of an existing order for 35 A320neo into the larger A321neo.

20th December 2023

First Qantas A220 sports Aboriginal art

Australia’s national carrier has taken delivery of its first new generation A220, becoming the 20th operator of the type. The aircraft is the first of 29 A220s ordered by the Qantas Group for operation by QantasLink, the company’s regional airline that services metropolitan and regional destinations across Australia.

18th December 2023

Airbus develops adaptable firefighting capability for A400

Airbus Defence and Space has conducted a new flight-test campaign of the A400M Roll-on/Roll-off firefighting prototype kit, dropping 20,000 litres of retardant and creating high concentration lines over 400 metres long.

5th December 2023

International Innovation Review: Behind the scenes at the Airbus FCAS Lab

In our June edition, we heard from Airbus and how the OEM and its partners are working to ensure that the Future Combat Air System (FCAS) will be operational by 2040.

6th December 2023

Airbus to convert Eurofighter for electronic combat

Following the recent parliamentary approval by the German budget committee, Airbus will equip 15 German Eurofighters for electronic combat - and equip them with a transmitter location and self-protection system from Saab, as well as "AARGM" anti-radar missiles from the American company Northrop Grumman.

30th November 2023

Next generation Airbus wing demonstrator takes off

An Airbus flying demonstrator, named the eXtra Performance Wing, has taken off for the first time, beginning a series of flight tests to explore new features and technologies that could help reduce fuel burn.

9th November 2023

Airbus awarded design contract for UK’s military satellite communications system

Airbus has been awarded the Skynet Design Support Contract (SDSC) to provide design authority services support for the UK’s Skynet military satellite communications systems.

27th October 2023

Airbus starts construction for new A400M maintenance centre

Airbus has officially launched the construction of the new A400M maintenance centre in Wunstorf.

11th October 2023

Airbus Helicopters and UK research centres sign new agreement

Airbus Helicopters in the UK has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the High Value Manufacturing (HVM) Catapult, a leading group of UK research, development and innovation centres.

24th July 2023

Airbus H175 gets Chinese certification

Airbus Helicopters has received certification from the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC) for the H175 helicopter.

19th July 2023

Airbus celebrates five years of the A220 aircraft

Airbus has celebrated the fifth year anniversary of when its newest family member landed in its new livery and officially became the A220.

12th July 2023

Airbus opens latest A320 final assembly

Airbus has inaugurated its new A320 Family final assembly line (FAL) in Toulouse during a ceremony attended by French Minister of Economy & Finance, Bruno Le Maire, French Transport Minister Clément Beaune, Minister of State for Industry Roland Lescure, and Minister of State for Territorial Collectivities and Rural Affairs Dominique Faure, as well as hundreds of Airbus employees.

10th July 2023

New technology hub to accelerate next generation Airbus wings

Airbus is investing further in its UK innovation capabilities, with the opening of a new Wing Technology Development Centre (WTDC) at its Filton site.

5th July 2023

Airbus to trial in-flight auxiliary power generated by hydrogen

Airbus UpNext has launched a new demonstrator programme to explore, on the ground and in flight, a new architecture for the generation of non-propulsive energy through the use of hydrogen fuel cells.

21st June 2023

Airline IndiGo places record-setting order for 500 Airbus A320s

IndiGo, India’s largest airline by market share, has placed a firm order for 500 Airbus A320 aircraft, setting the record for the biggest single purchase agreement in the history of commercial aviation.

20th June 2023

Behind the scenes at the Airbus FCAS Lab

Across Europe, in France, Germany and Spain, Airbus and its partners are working at full speed to ensure that the Future Combat Air System (FCAS) will be operational by 2040.

14th June 2023

Airbus and China strengthen aviation partnership

During a French state visit to China, Airbus signed new cooperation agreements with China Aviation industry partners.

6th April 2023

Airbus final assembly line in China delivers first A321neo

Airbus has delivered the first A321neo aircraft assembled at its Final Assembly Line Asia (FAL Tianjin) to China’s Juneyao Air in Tianjin, China.

3rd April 2023

Spanish aero sector jobs boosted by Eurofighter programme

The Eurofighter programme will cumulatively secure 26,000 jobs in Spain until 2060, according to a recent study by PricewaterhouseCoopers (PWC) on the economic impact of the ‘Halcon’ and ‘Quadriga’ contracts for the country.

27th March 2023

Airbus and Norwegian Air Ambulance Foundation develop eVTOL capability

Airbus Helicopters has partnered with the Norwegian Air Ambulance Foundation to develop CityAirbus NextGen’s future missions for medical services in Norway.

14th March 2023

Air India places large order with Airbus

Tata Group-owned Air India has announced its commitment to order 250 Airbus aircraft to boost its domestic and international operations.

14th February 2023

Airbus steps up global recruitment

To support its commercial aircraft ramp-up, meet challenges in defence, space and helicopters, Airbus says it intends to recruit more than 13,000 people globally in 2023.

27th January 2023

Dozen more Airbus A220s for Delta

Delta Air Lines has firmed up an order for 12 more A220-300 aircraft, bringing the airline’s total firm order for A220s to 119 aircraft - 45 A220-100s and 74 A220-300s.

18th January 2023

Airbus develops dragonfly inspired pilot assistance

Airbus UpNext, a wholly owned subsidiary of Airbus, has started testing new, on ground and in-flight, pilot assistance technologies on an A350-1000 test aircraft.

12th January 2023

Airbus deliveries rise eight per cent in 2022

Airbus delivered 661 commercial aircraft to 84 customers in 2022 and registered 1,078 gross new orders for the year. The aircraft manufacturer’s backlog by the end of December 2022 stood at 7,239 aircraft.

11th January 2023

Airbus and ArianeGroup to pioneer liquid hydrogen tech

Airbus and ArianeGroup, a joint venture equally owned by Airbus and Safran, and a world leader in space propulsion technologies, will work together to build the first liquid hydrogen refuelling facility for ZEROe aircraft at Toulouse, Blagnac airport. The station will be operational in 2025.

23rd December 2022

FCAS: contract awarded for next demonstrator phase

On behalf of the governments of France, Germany and Spain, Dassault Aviation, Airbus, Indra, Eumet and their industrial partners have been awarded a contract for the Demonstrator Phase 1B of the Future Combat Air System (FCAS).

20th December 2022

Airbus reveals hydrogen-powered zero-emission engine

Airbus has revealed that it is developing a hydrogen-powered fuel cell engine. The propulsion system is being considered as one of the potential solutions to equip its zero-emission aircraft that will enter service by 2035.

30th November 2022

Croatia Airlines opts for A220-300

Croatia’s national flag carrier Croatia Airlines, based in Zagreb, has signed a firm order for six A220-300 aircraft. The airline plans to lease an additional nine A220s, taking its total commitment for the type to 15.

29th November 2022

Airbus assembly line in China produces its first A321

Airbus has commissioned the first A321 aircraft to be assembled at its final assembly line in Tianjin, China.

14th November 2022

Commercial aircraft services market to double by 2041

Airbus expects the services market to recover to pre pandemic levels in 2023 and to double in value over the next 20 years – from $95bn today to over $230bn in 2041.

7th October 2022

Etihad confirms orders for Airbus freighters

Etihad Airways has firmed up its order with Airbus for seven new generation A350F freighters

3rd August 2022

Airbus takes up hydrogen contrail challenge

Airbus UpNext, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Airbus, has revealed a flight test programme to study the contrails produced by a hydrogen combustion engine as part the Company’s ZEROe roadmap.

22nd July 2022

Airbus finishes assembly of first future wing prototype

Airbus’ research and technology programme – Wing of Tomorrow – has delivered a first full-size wing demonstrator that will help mature next-generation wing technologies.

21st July 2022

Airbus selects partners to develop CityAirbus NextGen rear structure

Airbus is partnering with KLK Motorsport and Modell- und Formenbau Blasius Gerg to design, develop and manufacture the rear structure of CityAirbus NextGen.

22nd June 2022

Airbus A321XLR completes first flight

The first Airbus A321XLR (Xtra Long Range) has successfully completed its first flight from Hamburg-Finkenwerder Airport.

17th June 2022

Airbus launches hydrogen tech development centre in Filton

Airbus is strengthening its presence in the UK with the launch of a Zero Emission Development Centre (ZEDC) for hydrogen technologies.

27th May 2022

Airbus wins US Army helicopter logistics support contract

Airbus has signed a follow-on Contractor Logistics Support (CLS) contract with the US Army to provide spare parts, material, and engineering support for the service’s entire UH-72A and UH-72 B Lakota fleet of 482 utility and training helicopters.

24th May 2022

Airbus announces 6,000 new jobs, including 450 at Broughton

Airbus has announced the creation of 6,000 new jobs globally, including 450-550 expected to come to its Broughton, Wales wing assembly plant.

9th May 2022

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