AIRBUS' A380 FINAL ASSEMBLY FACILITY INAUGURATED BY FRENCH PRESIDENT

16 July 2002

The site of Airbus' new final assembly facility for the A380 in Toulouse, France will be inaugurated by the President of France, Jacques Chirac, this afternoon. The ceremony, hosted by Airbus President and CEO Noël Forgeard, will be attended by French Transport Minister Gilles de Robien, eminent local and government officials as well as distinguished guests from Airbus' airline customers, shareholders and key suppliers. Jacques Chirac will unveil a commemorative pillar to mark the historic occasion.

"Airbus is privileged and honoured by the presence of Jacques Chirac, the President of France. Both for the integration of Airbus as a single company and for the A380, his strong support and personal presence have been a source of pride and confidence for us all," said Airbus President and CEO Noël Forgeard. "I also thank all those attending the ceremony today and all Airbus' stakeholders for their contribution in making our vision for the future of air travel a reality." 

The ceremony will include a guided tour of the site and a virtual reality visit of the facilities as they will appear when finished.

The new 50 hectare (120 acre) facility will house the giant final assembly hall and static test hall for the all-new A380 superjumbo. The site is part of the 220 hectare (540 acre) Aeroconstellation industrial complex, which will be linked to Blagnac airport by two new taxiways. Located next to Airbus' headquarters and its Toulouse final assembly lines, the site provides a tailor-made solution for the A380 and is ideally located to take full advantage of Toulouse's competence and expertise in assembling and putting a new aircraft into the sky.

Work began in January 2002 and will be completed by the end of 2003. By 2004, the assembly line's 23 overhead cranes will be operational and Airbus will start producing the world's largest passenger aircraft.