European manufacturer Airbus has just announced a massive order for nearly 300 aircraft for Chinese airlines.
The official statement from the manufacturer says that an agreement has been signed with Air China, China Eastern, China Southern and Shenzhen Airlines for 292 aircraft of the A320 family, which includes A319, A320 and A321. This is the first major purchase made by Chinese companies since the outbreak of the pandemic, which had its initial epicenter in the Asian country.
It is not specified how many units of each model and how the division between the companies will occur, but it is expected that all of these will be variants of the Neo with the new engine that are already working in the mentioned companies.
Airbus currently dominates China’s single-aisle commercial aircraft market, despite Boeing having a larger presence given the larger number of twin-aisle aircraft.
In turn, the country has 2,070 aircraft of a European manufacturer, in addition to the plant in Tianjin, where aircraft of the A320 family are assembled, and there is also a finishing line for the A330 family. Another Airbus presence is the helicopter division with an assembly line for the H135 in Qingdao.
