Airbus Delivers First A320 Assembled in China

Airbus has delivered the first A320 aircraft assembled at its Final Assembly Line China (FALC) in Tianjin, China. The aircraft delivered to Dragon Aviation Leasing will be leased to and operated by Sichuan Airlines.

"The highly reliable and efficient Airbus aircraft are very valuable assets of aircraft leasing companies. As a China-based company, Dragon Aviation Leasing is proud to take delivery of the first Airbus aircraft assembled in China," said Li Hai, Chairman of Dragon Aviation Leasing.

Lan Xinguo, President of Sichuan Airlines, added, "Sichuan Airlines was the first Chinese airline to introduce the A320 Family aircraft in China in 1995. Today, we are proud to become the operator of the first A320 assembled in China. We believe that the Airbus aircraft further enhances our profitability and competitiveness with low operational costs and high reliability."

The Export-Import Bank of China, a strategic long term partner to Dragon Aviation Leasing, has been supporting the financing for the purchase of the aircraft. The A320 to be operated by Sichuan Airlines is in a two-class configuration, with eight first class seats and 156 economy seats.

The aircraft will be deployed on domestic trunk routes between the airline's base of Chengdu to such major cities like Beijing and Shanghai. It enters service today (24 June) on the route from Chengdu to Beijing. The aircraft will join the existing fleet composed of 40 Airbus single-aisle aircraft.

See other recent news regarding: Travel News Asia, Airbus, Tianjin, A320, Chengdu, Beijing