Economic Watch: Airbus, partners to establish aircraft lifecycle service center in China

BEIJING, Jan. 20 (Xinhua) -- Airbus has signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to set up a sustainable aircraft "lifecycle" service center in southwest China's Chengdu, according to Airbus China Thursday.

The center will cover business ranging from aircraft parking and storage to maintenance, upgrade, conversion, dismantling and recycling services for diverse aircraft types, according to the MOU signed by Airbus, Chengdu and industrial partners.

"Airbus is committed to continuously investing in China. We will also continue to deploy the sustainability roadmap for the aviation industry, enabling the increased re-use of aircraft and the recycling of materials and equipment," said George Xu, executive vice president of Airbus and chief executive officer of Airbus China.

"The center will expand Airbus' aviation services and boost its performance in the aircraft recycling market in China, sustaining China's green development strategy," Xu added.

Generating expertise and resources from diverse partners, the center will pioneer the sector in the Chinese market and will be the first of its kind outside of Europe.

It will cover a surface area of around 690,000 square meters with a storage capacity of 125 aircraft.

Airbus and its partners planned to start construction of the center within 2022, and put it into operation by the end of 2023 after receiving permissions from authorities, according to Airbus China.

Tarmac Aerosave, one of the partners of the center, will bring expertise in eco-efficient aircraft dismantling to the project.

Airbus subsidiary Satair, which is located within the center, will acquire aging aircraft, trade, and thereafter, distribute the used aircraft parts to complete the full scope of lifecycle services for aircraft, according to Airbus China.

Airbus is expanding its multi-dimensional cooperation with China, covering the complete life-cycle of the aviation ecosystem.

The European aerospace giant and its Chinese partners are making efforts in fields such as reducing waste and water consumption in production, introducing green power and water recycling, and exploring innovative techniques.

China's civil aviation sector has remained the world's second-largest in terms of passenger trips.

Thanks to China's economic resilience and effective pandemic control, China is leading the global civil aviation industry in recovery from the COVID-19 impact.