Airbus Qingdao Plant: French aviation giant inaugurates first helicopter assembly line in China

World
Europe

02:23

Airbus is expanding its operations in China. The French aviation giant has opened a new assembly line in the coastal city of Qingdao. It's the first plant for Airbus's H-135 family of helicopters outside its home in Europe. Our reporter GUAN YANG has more.

Helicopter sales in China have been propelled higher - by the rapid growth of the offshore wind industry and emergency medical and public services. After 2 years of construction for the new assembly line, Airbus Helicopters is ready to bank on that demand.

MARIE-AGNES VEVE, GENERAL MANAGER AIRBUS HELICOPTERS CHINA "We are moving on with the Qingdao made helicopters, the first two units are going to be rolled out at the end of the year."

The new line was designed specifically for the final assembly of Airbus H135, a twin-engine helicopter known for its high endurance and ability to land almost anywhere to perform difficult missions.

To be able to work here, engineers like Su Jun had to complete a 7-month intensive training program in Germany.

SU JUN, ASSEMBLY ENGINEER QINGDAO FINAL ASSEMBLY LINE, AIRBUS HELICOPTERS CHINA "We were trained to follow a standardized production procedure, where all the instructions were in English. The line in Qingdao meets the same production requirements as the plants in Europe."

GUAN YANG QINGDAO, SHANDONG PROVINCE "The Chinese market for civil helicopters has blossomed in recent years. In the past decade, market demand has quadrupled, and it is likely to continue that climb as China plans to further open its airspace for the general aviation industry."

MARIE-AGNES VEVE, GENERAL MANAGER AIRBUS HELICOPTERS CHINA "We will help CAC and provinces in China in order to give relevant information. We are very ambitious to have this big constraint removed, because it is the main restriction for the development of general aviation industry in China."

The initial annual capacity of the assembly line is set at 18 helicopters, but it could be doubled in the next few years to accommodate growing demand. Supporting facilities like distribution offices, maintenance & repair centers, and training bases are being built.

GUAN YANG, CGTN, QINGDAO.