Airbus to add 500 employees after multi-billion pound aircraft supply deal with Air India
Airbus, one of the world’s largest aircraft manufacturers, is set to employ 500 workers at its wing-making facility in North Wales after it signed a multi-billion pound aircraft contract with Air India.
The deal, according to a report by Simple Flying, involves the production of new wings for a fleet of 200 aircraft and other subsequent orders in hundreds that will keep the aircraft manufacturer busy over the next two years.
The UK’s Department for Business and Trade said wings, designed by Airbus at Filton near Bristol, will be assembled at the manufacturer’s Broughton site in North Wales, which is expected to bring an additional 450 manufacturing jobs and more than £100 million ($121 million) of investment to Wales.
United Kingdom Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said on social media that the landmark deal is essential for the UK’s economic state.
“This is one of the biggest export deals to India in decades and a huge win for the UK’s aerospace sector. With wings from Broughton and engines from Derby, this deal will support jobs around the country and help deliver one of our five priorities – growing the economy.”
Last week, Air India, owned by parent company Tata, confirmed a historic and massive aircraft order totaling 470 aircraft split between Boeing and Airbus models.
The carrier also revealed details of its future fleet, which includes a placement for 10 Boeing 777X widebodies.
Among the Airbus orders, Air India agreed to buy 40 widebody Airbus A350 aircraft, six of them being the -900 variant and the remaining 34 being the -1000 variant.
The six A350-900s were built initially for Aeroflot but will be repainted into Air India colors quickly and ready to fly for the carrier before the end of this year.
Airbus will reportedly begin delivering the larger A350-1000 airplanes in 2025, and with an order of such size, the aircraft will likely become Air India’s flagship of the carrier’s fleet.
Simple Flying reported that 210 A320neo narrowbodies are also included in the order for short and medium-haul operations.
Airbus currently has more than 4,000 workers at its facility; with the announcement of additional employees, the aircraft manufacturer is set to become one of the UK’s employers with the largest workforce.
Engine manufacturer, Rolls-Royce, is also set to benefit from the deal with its engine facility in Derby.
Culled from Simple Flying, an online aviation news platform.
