Parts for 200th aircraft reach Airbus' China assembly line

The Airbus assembly line in north China's Tianjin has received parts for the 200th A320 family aircraft, which will be delivered to China Eastern Airlines in December, Airbus said Tuesday.

Sections including the forward and aft fuselage, horizontal and vertical tail, main landing gear doors, inner flaps and engine pylons reached the A320 Family Final Assembly Line China in Tianjin on Tuesday.

Those parts and components were produced at different Airbus sites in Europe and carried by a commercial cargo vessel from Hamburg to Tianjin, Airbus said.

The wings for the A320 Family aircraft assembled at the Tianjin assembly line are locally produced in Tianjin by Airbus's partner Xi'an Aircraft Industry (Group) Company, while the engines will arrive at a later date directly from the engine supplier.

The final assembly line in China is a joint venture between Airbus and a Chinese consortium including the Tianjin Free Trade Zone and China Aviation Industry Corporation.

It started operations in August 2008, assembling A319 and A320 aircraft. So far, a total of 186 A320 family aircraft have been delivered from Tianjin.