Airbus at Japan Aerospace 2004 in Yokohoma

Airbus will be one of the major exhibitors at Japan Aerospace 2004 (October 6 to 10), with an exhibit highlighting the core values of comfort, innovation and technical commonality which have made its product line the preferred choice of airlines for the 21st century. Centre-stage at the exhibit will be scale models of the next-generation large aircraft A380 and the best-selling single-aisle A320 Family.

Airbus comes to JA 2004 after a solid performance in 2003 when it also became Number 1 in terms of deliveries, a performance it continued in the first half of 2004 with its advanced product range. Simultaneously, the A380 programme continues to meet all its milestones.

With entry-into-service in 2006, the A380 is designed to meet traffic growth on the most heavily travelled air routes, especially those linking major Asian cities with key destinations in Europe and North America. The aircraft will offer two full-length widebody decks, with the baseline version capable of carrying 555 passengers in three classes on flights from Tokyo to destinations in Europe or North America.

Airbus forecasts a market for some 1,500 airliners larger than 400 seats, including freighters, over the next 20 years, of which over half will be required by airlines from the Asia-Pacific region. Within this context, Japan will have the largest single requirement for the aircraft of any country in the world.

In the production side, a total of twenty-one Japanese leading companies have joined the A380 programme: JAMCO, Torey, Toho Tenax, Sumitomo Metal Industries, Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Fuji Heavy Industries, Japan Aircraft Manufacturing, ShinMeiwa Industries, Yokohama Rubber, Nikkiso, Yokogawa Electric, Casio Computers, Makino Milling Machines, Bridgestone, Mitsubishi Rayon, Matsushita Avionics Systems, Koito Industries, Sumitomo Precision Products, Minebea, Showa Aircraft, and Komy. The estimated revenue of Japan in the A380 programme will be well over US $4.6 billion in the years to come.

The Asia-Pacific region is a core market for Airbus, with more than 640 aircraft of all types now in service with 44 operators across the region. Total orders from the region currently stand at more than 900 aircraft. Airbus has been especially successful in the widebody market in the region, initially with the A300/A310 family and more recently with the market leading A330/A340 family, which have both been selected by almost every major Asian carrier. The new A380 has been designed from the outset to meet the demands of the Asia-Pacific market and has already been selected by four major carriers. Whilst already popular with airlines throughout the Asia-Pacific region, the A320 is rapidly becoming the preferred choice for the wave of new Low Cost Carriers. In Japan, All Nippon Airways ordered 28 A320s and 7 A321s. Japan Airlines operates 36 of various A300s.

Airbus is an EADS joint Company with BAE SYSTEMS.



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