Airbus’ first US-made aircraft, an A321 for jetBlue, took off this morning from the OEM’s Mobile, Alabama facility.
Takeoff was at 10:36 EDT and the aircraft should land at 13:30 EDT in Mobile. The flight can be tracked using this link. Intriguingly, although built in the US, the aircraft carries a French registration: F-WZMA. The reason for this is that Airbus is doing the test flights under the jurisdiction of EASA. For Airbus it is easier to use existing EASA paperwork. And the FAA approves of this approach.
This first aircraft represents an important step in the commercial aircraft industry. Airbus will be producing commercial aircraft in the United States. This is a significant event for Boeing too, as the competition has rooted in local soil. Airbus joins another European company, Daimler Benz, that built a plant requiring high skill levels in Alabama.
Co-Founder AirInsight. My previous life includes stints at Shell South Africa, CIC Research, and PA Consulting. Got bitten by the aviation bug and ended up an Avgeek. Then the data bug got me, making me a curious Avgeek seeking data-driven logic. Also, I appreciate conversations with smart people from whom I learn so much. Summary: I am very fortunate to work with and converse with great people.
“Mobile Alabama”. For some reason that name has been showing up in a good many of these small news stories lately. Must be something in the water.
But I digress.
Today, here in Mobile, we saw the end result of a great deal of training and hard work. As a citizen of Mobile I want to say Thank You to Air Bus for keeping its corporate word.
Thanks again Air Bus, Mobile Alabama really appreciates you being here.
I also want to let Boeing Know that there are no hard feelings about what happened in the past. Boeing is as welcomed in Mobile as any of the other companies that are scurrying to get their businesses setup here.
This facilty opened only very recently. My impression is that this is a very basic plug and play assembly process, with no real aerospace expertise, similar to the china facilities. Don’t mistake this final assembly plant as being nearly as significant as Boeing in North Carolina
CJ:
Maybe you don’t live here or maybe you simply don’t understand the nature of the aerospace industry in south Alabama. Our expertise here is deep and goes back as far as WW II. Only a stones throw from Air Bus is the company that built the engines for Burt Rutan’s plane that flew around the world without refueling. A quick Google of Aviation industries located on the Gulf Coast may put you and i on the same page.
I welcomed Boeing to our area in my recent post in the spirit of reconciliation. Boeing, Air Bus and the city of Mobile went through a tough time during the difficult and contentious bid process over the Military’s new aerial refueling tanker. But that is over now.
I would like to bury the hatchet with Boeing and once again express our desire to see Boeing listed as one of the many Aviation companies that call Mobile Alabama home.
Anyway what you said about the Air Bus plant not being significant is probably true. But then again people down here in Alabama never have sought the praise of others. We simply get the job done and move on to the next project.
Roll Tide.