Airbus is one of the world's top aircraft manufacturers. With headquarters in Toulouse France, it employs over 50,000 people designing, building and delivering aircraft all around the world. I will take a look at how it all started.
Airbus produces all things aviation from commercial planes, military planes, helicopters and even space technology. Airbus is truly involved in all parts of the aviation world, however, for this report, I will be focusing on the commercial side of the company. The things mentioned in this post are by no means everything about Airbus but include some things I believe are significant.
Airbus was formed in 1970 by French and German aerospace firms (later joined by Spanish and British firms) to compete with American manufacturers such as Boeing and Lockheed Martin. It also wanted to fill a niche for short to medium-range high-capacity jetliners.
Parts for Airbus aircraft are built around Europe and then transported to the final assembly line in Toulouse. The wings are made in the United Kingdom while the tail sub-assemblies are manufactured in Spain. These sub-assemblies are then transported to Toulouse by road, rail, barge, ship or aircraft. Airbus uses the Airbus Super Transporter Beluga to transport large components such as wings from the UK to France.
Airbus first produced the A300. It was developed to fill a market niche for short to medium-range, high-capacity aircraft. It entered service in 1974 with Air France. It was the first widebody aircraft equipped with only two engines for more economical operations. The A300 as well as the A310 were discontinued in 2007.
The A320 was launched in 1984. It was designed as a narrowbody, short to medium-range aircraft. The aircraft incorporated technical innovations such as fly-by-wire systems meaning the aircraft had an electronic rather than mechanical linked computer-based flight system. It first entered revenue service in 1988 with Air France. The aircraft was so successful that Airbus developed the jetliner into a family. It lengthened the fuselage to create the A321 and shortened it to create the A319. The fuselage was then shortened a second time to produce the A318.
Airbus developed long-range jetliners - the A340 in 1993 and the smaller twin-engined A330 in 1994. Airbus then launched the giant A380 in 2007. The A380 is the world's largest passenger aircraft with a typical seating of 525 people. To read more about the A380, read our blog on 15 years of the A380 by clicking the link below:
At the time of writing, Airbus has amassed a total of 21,737 orders since the 1970s and has delivered 14,482 of these orders to 444 customers. In 2021 the aircraft manufacturer delivered 611 aircraft - an impressive number.
Looking to the future, Airbus has several new products that are currently in development. The A321XLR is an extended-range version of the A321. According to Airbus, it has a range of 4,000 nautical miles and a maximum take-off weight of 101 tonnes. With 16,000 litres of extra fuel capacity and between 180 and 220 seats Airbus claims the aircraft will have a 30% lower fuel burn per seat. Airbus also says that the A321XLR will have 45% lower trip costs than modern wide bodies.
Additionally, Airbus aims to develop the world's first zero-emissions commercial aircraft by 2035. Their ZEROe aircraft will be powered by hydrogen and consist of three designs. A blended wing design, a turboprop design and a turbofan design.
Airbus is committed to sustainability and aims to continuously improve its products. As part of its decarbonisation plan, it is involved in fleet renewal, as well as alternatives to traditional jet fuel such as Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) and hydrogen. Additionally, Airbus uses lightweight materials resulting in a 25% to 30% decrease in CO2 emissions and a 50% reduction in noise emissions. Airbus is also involved in exploring technology to develop clean flights. This includes zero-emission aircraft as mentioned above with their ZEROe project. Airbus aims to develop zero-emissions aircraft by 2035. Airbus is also investigating SAF. Currently, all Airbus aircraft are certified too fly with 50% SAF, however, they aim to have a fleet capable of 100% SAF by 2030.
Airbus has come a long way since its inception in 1970. They have built many aircraft from the A318 'Baby Bus' to the giant A380. Airbus has a lot planned for the future, so we can look forward to what will come next.
What are you most excited about from this European manufacturer? Let us know by leaving a comment below or posting your thoughts on our forum.
Comments