Airbus has inaugurated its new final assembly line (FAL) in Toulouse, France. The facility will produce aircraft in the manufacturer's A320 Family as Airbus seeks to ramp up production of the popular narrowbody type.
The new assembly line is in the former Airbus A380 assembly building, named after Jean-Luc Lagardère. Built over a period of just 26 months, the building is 1,600 feet long, 820 feet wide, and over 150 feet high. It features massive sliding doors reaching almost 300 feet wide and 150 high to allow for the rollout of the double decker airplane.
Next steps for the A380 site
The revamp was unveiled at a ceremony attended by French Minister of Economy & Finance Bruno Le Maire, French Transport Minister Clément Beaune, Minister of State for Industry Roland Lescure, and Minister of State for Territorial Collectivities and Rural Affairs Dominique Faure, as well as hundreds of Airbus employees.
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The new FAL will contribute to Airbus' ongoing mission to increase production rates to 75 A320 family aircraft per month in 2026. A significant portion of those are Airbus A321s, representing around 60% of the total A320 family backlog. Airbus CEO Guillaume Faury expressed his excitement to see the new site come online and join existing assembly lines across the world.
“The inauguration of this new A321-capable final assembly line in Toulouse represents another milestone in the ongoing modernisation of our global industrial system
"We’re pleased to see this new facility join our worldwide network of final assembly sites which will comprise four FALs in Hamburg, Germany; two in Toulouse, France; two in Mobile, United States; and two in Tianjin, China, all them capable of assembling the A321.”
The last Airbus A380 rolled off the assembly line in December 2021. A total of 254 superjumbos were produced, with the final being delivered to Emirates with great fanfare.
A new mission
The refreshed facility will feature many innovations to bring it up to date for the production of narrowbodies. This latest A320 family final assembly line has been redesigned to maximize product quality and efficiency and establish new standards for health, safety, and sustainability.
The new updates include digital production control using tablets and smartphones to reduce paper consumption, automated logistics for parts distribution, and lightweight robots for joining sections.
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Initial operations at the site for its new mission began at the end of 2022 with the delivery of the first fuselage sections. The first aircraft to be fully assembled in this facility is expected to roll out by the end of the year. A spokesperson for Airbus confirmed the first plane off the line will be an Airbus A321.
The refurbished industrial site, one of the largest in Europe, will progressively ramp up its operations between now and 2025 to meet the manufacturers' target for delivery rates as it seeks to reduce its order backlog. The site will contribute to the local community by directly employing around 700 workers.
One section of the plant will resume A380 work, as Airbus confirmed it would use part of the building to undertake wing inspections and repairs on existing A380s.