Where Does Airbus Build Its Airplanes?

Born from a joint government project amongst European countries in the 1970's, Airbus quickly established itself as a global aircraft manufacturing powerhouse. Despite its American competitor, Boeing, having a head start for over half a century, the European aircraft manufacturer quickly made a name for itself by producing several noteworthy airplanes for both commercial and military use. These have included the likes of the Airbus A380, or the largest passenger aircraft that is no longer in production, and the small airliner A220, which went through dramatic changes before Airbus stuck the landing. 

With Boeing's recent safety issues netting serious consequences, it's unsurprising that many people are wondering where its main competitor, Airbus, is made. However, the answer isn't that simple. Due to the nature of globalization, it's important to note that supply chains for many complex pieces of technology are seldom limited to a certain geographic location and Airbus planes are no different. 

On its website, Airbus shares that about 80% of its aircraft components are made outside its manufacturing plants. In addition, Airbus has over 20 manufacturing sites that depend on thousands of different global suppliers for various components across dozens of assembly lines.

Airbus has final assembly lines located in France, Germany, China, and North America. If you're wondering why these particular locations matter, Airbus has its manufacturing facilities where its top spending clientele are. In 2023, Statista cites that Airbus' top revenue generating regions were Europe, Asia-Pacific, and North America, respectively.

In 2020, the United States introduced additional tariffs on European aircraft manufacturing parts, which would have significantly affected margins for Airbus manufacturing. With almost $14 billion in revenue from North America in 2023 (via Statista), it's no wonder why Airbus is doubling down on more local manufacturing in the region. Some local airlines that use Airbus airplanes include American Airlines, United Airlines, Delta Airlines, JetBlue, and Spirit. Apart from final assembly lines in Alabama, Airbus also has training centers, customer service centers, and engineering facilities in North America.

Aside from commercial planes, Airbus also builds planes for the military, such as the Airbus A400 Atlas, the Airbus A330 MRTT, and the Airbus C295. Airbus has also produced commercial and military helicopters in Columbus, Mississippi for over 20 years. In this particular factory, the company shares that veterans make up a fifth of its employees, producing the UH-72A, the newest arrival in the United States Army helicopter fleet.