A-380

Photo Credit: Airbus Airbus (Toulouse, France) has inaugurated its new A320 Family final assembly line (FAL) in Toulouse during a ceremony attended by Bruno Le Maire, French minister of economy and finance, Clément Beaune, French transport minister, Roland Lescure, minister of state for industry, Dominique Faure, minister of state for territorial collectivities and rural affairs, as well as hundreds of Airbus employees. “The inauguration of this new A321-capable final assembly line in Toulouse represents another milestone in the ongoing modernization of our global industrial system. This FAL will contribute to the ongoing production rate ramp-up to 75 A320 Family aircraft per month in 2026, while meeting the increased demand for A321s which currently represents around 60% of the total A320 Family backlog,” Airbus CEO Guillaume Faury says. “We’re pleased to see this new facility join our worldwide network of final assembly sites which will comprise four FALs in Hamburg, Germany; two in Toulouse, France; two in Mobile, Alabama, U.S.; and two in Tianjin, China, all them capable of assembling the A321.” A variety of innovations feature prominently in this latest A320 Family final assembly line, with the aim of maximizing product quality, efficiency, as well as establishing new standards for health, safety and sustainability. These innovations include digital production control using tablets and smartphones to reduce paper consumption, automated logistics for parts distribution and lightweight robots for joining sections. Installed in the former A380 “Jean-Luc Lagardère” assembly building, the new FAL started initial operations at the end of 2022 with the delivery of the first fuselage sections. Roll-out of the first aircraft fully assembled in this facility — an A321 — is expected to take place by the end of this year. The industrial site will progressively ramp up operations between now and 2025, directly employing around 700 workers. For related content, learn how Airbus is committing to A320 rate increases among persisting supply chain challenges, and the first A321neo delivery from Airbus’ FAL in China.