Airbus

Airbus
Duch · CC BY-SA 4.0 · source
Name	Airbus SE
Type	Societas Europaea
Traded as	EPA: AIR, OTCQX: EADSY
Industry	Aerospace, defense
Founded	18 December 1970
Founder	Roger Béteille, Felix Kracht, Henri Ziegler, Franz Josef Strauss
Hq location	Leiden, Netherlands
Area served	Worldwide
Key people	René Obermann (Chairman), Guillaume Faury (CEO)
Products	Commercial airliners, military aircraft, satellites, space systems
Revenue	€65.4 billion (2023)
Num employees	134,267 (2023)

Airbus. Airbus SE is a European multinational aerospace corporation, central to the global aviation industry and a primary competitor to Boeing. Headquartered in the Netherlands, it designs, manufactures, and sells civil and military aerospace products worldwide and is a leader in space technology. The company's product line includes the world's largest passenger airliner, the Airbus A380, and the highly successful Airbus A320 family, with its operations spanning across Europe, North America, Asia, and beyond.

History

The consortium was formally established on 18 December 1970 through an initiative between the governments of France, West Germany, and later Spain and the United Kingdom, to create a European challenger to American dominance in aviation. Its first aircraft, the Airbus A300, made its maiden flight in 1972, pioneering the wide-body twin-engine concept for medium-haul routes. The 1980s saw expansion with the launch of the Airbus A320 family, which introduced revolutionary fly-by-wire technology to the single-aisle market, securing its commercial future. Major milestones include the formation of the European Aeronautic Defence and Space Company (EADS) in 2000, which consolidated its structure, and the controversial launch of the Airbus A380 program in the same decade to challenge the Boeing 747. In 2019, it rebranded as Airbus SE, following the legal dissolution of EADS.

Products

The commercial aircraft family is categorized into single-aisle and wide-body lines. The single-aisle Airbus A320 family, including the Airbus A319, Airbus A320neo, and Airbus A321, is the world's best-selling jet airliner family, competing directly with the Boeing 737. Its wide-body portfolio ranges from the long-range Airbus A330 and Airbus A350 XWB to the ultra-long-haul Airbus A340 and the double-decker Airbus A380. In defense and space, products include the Airbus A400M Atlas military transport, the Eurofighter Typhoon combat aircraft (via the Eurofighter Jagdflugzeug GmbH consortium), and a suite of satellites like those for the Galileo program. The company also manufactures helicopters, such as the Airbus H145, under its Airbus Helicopters division.

Operations and facilities

Final assembly lines are strategically located across Europe and internationally. Major sites include Toulouse in France for wide-body aircraft, Hamburg in Germany for single-aisle models, and Seville in Spain for military aircraft. Significant international facilities include a completion and delivery centre in Tianjin, China, and an assembly line in Mobile, Alabama, in the United States. Key design and engineering centers are found in Bristol (United Kingdom), Bremen (Germany), and Madrid (Spain). The European Space Agency is a major partner for space activities, with satellite integration performed in sites like Friedrichshafen.

Corporate affairs

The company is governed by a board of directors chaired by René Obermann, with Guillaume Faury serving as Chief Executive Officer. It is a Societas Europaea publicly traded on the Euronext Paris exchange and the OTC Markets Group in the United States. Major shareholders include the French government, the German government through various entities, and SOGEADE, a holding company. Airbus maintains a complex network of global subsidiaries and joint ventures, such as Airbus Atlantic for components and Airbus Defence and Space for its military portfolio. It has faced significant legal and regulatory challenges, including investigations by the Serious Fraud Office and the U.S. Department of Justice over allegations of corruption, resulting in substantial settlements.

Technology and innovation

The company has been a pioneer in applying advanced composite materials across its airframes, most extensively on the Airbus A350 XWB. Its introduction of fly-by-wire with side-stick controls on the Airbus A320 revolutionized cockpit design and aircraft handling. Ongoing innovation focuses on reducing environmental impact, leading projects like the ZEROe program which explores hydrogen-powered aircraft and the development of sustainable aviation fuels in partnership with organizations like the European Union. In the space sector, it is a prime contractor for modules of the International Space Station and a key industrial partner for the Ariane launch vehicles developed by Arianespace.

Category:Aerospace companies Category:Companies listed on Euronext Paris Category:Manufacturing companies of France Category:Manufacturing companies of Germany