China-Europe aviation soars
Airbus announces plans for Shenzhen-based global innovation center
Fast-growing market demand for civil aircraft and rapid development of the aviation industry offer unprecedented opportunities for cooperation between China and Europe, a partnership which has seen remarkable progress in recent years.
On July 17, Aviation Industry Corporation of China (AVIC) announced the establishment of AVIC Cabin Systems Co (ACS).
The operational headquarters of ACS is based in London, with its products covering most segments of the cabin interior industry, and with high-profile customers such as Boeing and Airbus.
“The fact that the company’s operational headquarters is based in London demonstrates AVIC’s confidence in the business environment in the UK and Europe, and marks another important step in AVIC’s globalization,” said Chairman of AVIC Tan Ruisong at the launch ceremony held in London.
Statistics shows that the global market of cabin interiors in 2017 was valued at $12.6 billion and is anticipated to grow to $14.4 billion in 2020 and $18.4 billion in 2025 at an annual rate of nearly 5 percent.
Gary Montgomery, CEO of Thompson Aero Seating, a major ACS supplier of first-class and business-class seats, based in Belfast, Northern Ireland, said the establishment of ACS will help create synergy across cabin interior companies and provide better products and services to global customers, noting that he is optimistic about the prospects of ACS.
Chinese Ambassador to the UK Liu Xiaoming, who also attended the ceremony, said it is exciting to witness “China-UK cooperation on aviation moving up to a new level.”
The event has had a significant impact on the aviation sector in both China and the UK, and on world aviation development, he said.
As early as 1997, the Aviation Working Group was set up under the ChinaUK Joint Economic and Trade Commission in a move to enhance cooperation on aviation technology and engineering.
In 2017, a major agreement was reached to expand air traffic rights at the 9th China-UK Economic and Financial Dialogue. According to this arrangement, the number of direct flights between the two countries was to increase by 50 percent to 150 per week. Recently, Chinese airlines have opened five new direct flights between China and Britain.
“It is amid such an exciting development that AVIC Cabin Systems was born. This meets the need of upgrading the China-UK ‘air corridor’. It is a vivid example of the thriving cooperation between our two countries on aviation,” said the Chinese ambassador.
The Chinese aviation industry, though a late starter, has grown rapidly to become an important pillar of China’s economic restructuring. China is considered the world’s most promising aviation market. By 2020, China will have over 500 general aviation airports and over 5,000 general aviation aircraft.
In June, China issued Special Management Measures (Negative List) for the Access of Foreign Investment (2018) to further increase access to the manufacturing sector in which foreignownership limits for manufacturers of certain aircraft, including trunk route aircraft, regional aircraft, general-use aircraft, helicopter, drone and aerostat, are removed.
“These measures will help accelerate the integration of China’s aviation industry in the global supply chain. They will also create growth opportunities for global partners, including those in the UK,” said the Chinese ambassador.
Xu Gang, CEO of Airbus China, said the long-standing cooperation between Airbus and China is an exemplary case of China-Europe cooperation in the high-tech field.
Airbus has committed to raising A320 production capacity at its final assembly line (FAL) in North China’s Tianjin from four to six aircraft per month by 2020. It has delivered more than 370 aircraft since the FAL started operation in 2008 as the first Airbus single-aisle FAL outside of Europe.
The rise in production also requires strengthened capacity from the Chinese partners, said Xu. The Airbus A320 FAL in Tianjin is a joint venture involving Airbus, AIVC and Tianjin Free Trade Zone.
Meanwhile, Airbus has announced that its second global innovation center will be established in Shenzhen, South China’s Guangdong Province, with the aim to accelerate innovation and shape the future of flight.
“China enjoys huge capability and potential in the aviation industry, and I have full confidence in the future of the Chinese aviation market,” Xu said.