Wizz Air has taken delivery of its first Airbus A321neo to be produced on the final assembly line in Tianjin, China. The delivery marks the first delivery to a European airline with the first Chinese built A321neo going to Shanghai based Juneyao Air earlier this year.
4 years from first delivery
The delivery also comes 4 years after Wizz Air took delivery of its first ever A321neo of which the airline now has a fleet of 35 in its mainline Hungarian brand.
By combining all A321neos across all subsidiaries, the total comes to 95 which is more than half of all Wizz aircraft.
This particular one that was delivered from Tianjin, was the 92nd A321neo for Wizz Air and since then, the airline has taken a 2nd A321neo from this final assembly line.
The Hungarian carrier currently holds the title for largest A321neo order in Europe and as part of its “WIZZ500” ambition, Wizz plans to add up to a further 355 aircraft by the end of the decade.
Praising this delivery, Wizz’s Chief Executive, Jozsef Varadi said, “As the most efficient single aisle aircraft flying today, the Airbus A321neo is our aircraft of choice.”
“As well as delivering exceptional operating economics, it provides the foundation from which to maintain our position as one of the world’s most sustainable airlines. This will help to ensure we continue to decrease our carbon intensity per passenger, even as we grow”.
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He added, “Today marks an important milestone, with the A321neo accounting for more than 50% of our fleet for the first time. It is fitting that we mark the occasion by becoming the first European customer to take delivery of an aircraft from Airbus’ final assembly line in Tianjin.”
“I would personally like to thank the team at Airbus and AVIC for making this possible. We look forward to our continued cooperation as Wizz Air accelerates toward becoming a 500 aircraft Group by he end of the decade.”
Successful operation in Tianjin
Airbus inaugurated it’s Tianjin Final Assembly Line in 2008, building A319s and A320s to start off with, with the first being delivered in 2009.
In addition, it was the first Final Assembly Line to be brought into action outside of Europe, even before the plant in Mobile, Alabama, U.S was inaugurated.
In its 14 year history, the plant has gone on to produce over 600 aircraft for airlines mostly in the surrounding region of China, South East and the wider Asia region.
In August 2022, the plant became A321 capable a significant milestone for Airbus and in turn made all Final Assembly Lines for Airbus around the world, A321 capable.
The first A321 family aircraft was delivered in early 2023 and now the first European carrier, Wizz has taken delivery of its first Chinese built A321neo.
With a successful history behind it, Airbus’s Tianjin plant will continue to see success in building A320 family aircraft and continue to allow for greater ease in reaching Airbus customers all over the world.
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