In the atmosphere of celebrating the 25th anniversary of Hong Kong's return to , an important piece of news has been ignored, but its significance cannot be underestimated. On July 1, China's three major aviation groups announced that they had signed agreements with Airbus ( Airbus ) to purchase a total of 292 A320neo series aircraft from Airbus, with a total price equivalent to more than 240 billion yuan ( China Southern Airlines, Air China, China Eastern Airlines purchased 96, 96, and 100 A320NEO series aircraft from Airbus respectively, with basic prices of approximately US$12.248 billion, US$12.213 billion, and US$12.796 billion respectively). This is the first time in the past three years that China's civil aviation industry has announced such a large-scale passenger aircraft order.
This is also the second time that China has made a large purchase of commercial jet aircraft since China Aviation Supplies Corporation signed a purchase agreement involving 300 aircraft with Airbus in France in 2019. At that time, China purchased 290 A320 series and 10 A350 series models. All orders this time are also for the A320 series. According to data released by Airbus and aviation data analysis agency Cirium, as of May this year, Airbus had a total of 1,771 single-aisle mainline passenger aircraft operated by Chinese mainland airlines, accounting for 55% of the market at this level.
After World War II, aviation giants such as American Boeing have always occupied an overwhelming position in the global commercial aircraft market. Commercial aircraft in European countries were unable to withstand the pressure of American competition and were retreating. Now in the Chinese market, the most critical market for Airbus and Boeing, the two are clearly at odds, and it is obvious that Boeing is at a disadvantage. And this is not as simple as economic accounting on the surface.
The US Boeing Company expressed disappointment that many Chinese airlines have ordered 292 Airbus aircraft , believing that "constructive dialogue" between European governments and Beijing has contributed to this major purchase, and urging the US and Chinese governments to engage in fruitful discussion.
reported that Boeing said in an emailed statement: "As the largest exporter to the United States with a 50-year relationship with China Aviation Industry , it is disappointing that geopolitical differences continue to limit U.S. aircraft exports. Boeing's sales to China have historically supported tens of thousands of U.S. jobs, and we hope to quickly resume orders and deliveries.
Boeing has historically counted a Chinese airline as its largest customer, but it has twice failed to sell its best-selling 737 Max model. Boeing's business in China has slowed following the crash and rising political tensions between the United States and China.
In May of this year, China Southern Airlines removed more than 100 Boeing 737 Max aircraft from its near-term fleet plan due to uncertainty about delivery. According to reports, Boeing has delivered only one commercial aircraft to China so far this year, while Airbus has delivered 47.
A few days ago, an article on the American website Politico used a method to smear Airbus to make excuses for Boeing's declining market share in China. The title of the article was actually "European Union Airbus has deep ties with China's military-industrial complex, report says," and said that although Boeing's aircraft sales in China were affected by the U.S.-China trade war under former U.S. President Trump A blow, but Airbus has had more success in China.
The American media is full of "envy, jealousy and hatred" for Airbus's development in China, which is completely unreasonable hype. Product performance and other factors are an important basis for Chinese airlines to choose to cooperate with Airbus. The United States does not reflect on Boeing's problems in aircraft performance, safety and other aspects, but blindly hypes the relationship between and China and Europe from a geopolitical perspective. Without cooperation in civil aviation procurement, it is simply unable to solve the practical dilemma of its declining market share in China.
Airbus is very attentive in China
The Chinese market has always been a key market for Airbus and its US rival Boeing, and both companies are working hard to expand their business in China. Since the grounding of the Max, Airbus has been far ahead of Boeing in the race for passenger jet orders and market share.
Airbus stated that as of the end of May 2022, the total number of Airbus fleets owned by Chinese airlines in service exceeded 2,070. This includes not only jetliners, but also helicopters and other types of products.As of the end of 2018, the number of Airbus civilian aircraft in active service in China has exceeded 1,700, and the total number of aircraft delivered to China accounts for nearly a quarter of the total number of Airbus deliveries.
Airbus official website announced that it has received a large order from China
It is worth noting that since entering the Chinese market in the mid-1980s, Airbus has completed localization like several other multinational companies.
According to the official Airbus website, Airbus Civil Aircraft has more than 1,900 employees in China, including joint ventures located in various places. Among them, many employees work in the A320 series aircraft final assembly line in Tianjin, China. This final assembly line was opened in 2008. In October 2020, the 500th aircraft produced by this final assembly line was delivered to the customer. In 2017, the new A330 aircraft completion and delivery center was opened in Tianjin, China. The center is located in the same park as the Asian final assembly line of the A320 series aircraft and the Airbus Tianjin delivery center. It is Airbus's first wide-body aircraft completion and delivery center outside Europe. It is responsible for the cabin installation, painting, flight testing, and customer service of the A330 aircraft. Acceptance and delivery work.
What is particularly worth mentioning is that from the perspective of product performance, the A320neo series aircraft purchased this time integrate new technologies such as new generation engines, which can reduce fuel consumption by 20% and significantly reduce airline costs. To meet growing orders, Airbus is moving forward with plans to increase production of its best-selling A320 family of passenger jets to 75 per month by 2025.
In addition, in November 2017, the Airbus China Innovation Center settled in Shenzhen, China, intending to leverage Shenzhen's global competitive advantages in technology research and development, industrialization, and international expansion to accelerate innovation in the aviation field.
In 2019, Airbus and China signed the "Memorandum of Understanding on Further Development of Industrial Cooperation", marking the continued strengthening of Airbus' long-term partnership with China.
Recently, on June 24, 2022, Airbus China R&D Center signed a contract to settle in Suzhou Industrial Park . Airbus is committed to leading the decarbonization of the aerospace industry as the company works towards its goal of bringing the world's first zero-emission civil aircraft to market by 2035. The establishment of the R&D center further expands Airbus' industrial footprint in China and demonstrates Airbus's roots in China and deepened cooperation.
The political implications of 292 aircraft
There is no doubt that this large order should be the result of cooperation after very long and arduous negotiations. It is worth pondering that it was announced at a time when China is listed as a "challenge" in NATO's strategy. A real report card directly tore apart the different realities in Europe and the United States.
The reality is here - there is no fundamental conflict between the interests of China and Europe. At most, there are differences in ideology between the two sides. Geographically, there is no contradiction between China and Europe; economically, China and Europe have a complementary relationship and there is no contradiction; objectively, the common interests of China-EU cooperation far outweigh the contradiction. The United States NATO hopes that everyone will deal with China together. The EU NATO also hopes to contain and suppress China, but it also hopes to gain benefits from cooperation with China.
China is also very clear that there are strategic differences between the United States and Europe on the issue of China. This is determined by the fundamental interests of the two. Europe does not have hegemony, nor does it have the strength to pursue hegemony. Therefore, there is no strategic contradiction between China and Europe.
The Chinese market is so huge. The passenger aircraft market alone is a trillion-dollar business. The only companies in the world that can produce large passenger aircraft are Boeing and Airbus. Who will place orders from China? This is not just an economic issue, but a political issue. The order itself tells the world with actual actions that China is the world's largest market, and any country can obtain sufficiently generous economic returns as long as it cooperates with China. Obviously, the reality is that cooperation can lead to win-win results, rather than suppression and smearing. The China-EU Investment Agreement has not yet been signed. If it is signed, the benefits will be even greater.
In 2022, when the world is looking forward to economic recovery, the global economy will encounter huge challenges. In the first quarter, the U.S. economy registered negative monthly growth, and the European economy also grew at almost zero.For the European economy, it needs a huge incremental market to stimulate and stable market demand, which only China can provide, and the economies of China and Europe are highly complementary. Europe and other countries in the world need to think calmly whether to be "kidnapped" on a chariot or to seek development.
