(Yicai) June 27 -- Airbus will deepen its supply chain partnerships in China to achieve mutual benefit with local suppliers who have demonstrated formidable competitiveness and strengths, the chief executive officer of the European plane maker's Chinese business has reportedly said.

A significant weakness in the aviation industry is that the supply chain system has failed to keep pace with accelerated industrialization, George Xu said on June 25, The Paper reported yesterday. This has directly led to delays in aircraft deliveries and posed challenges to Airbus' delivery schedule and industrial ramp-up targets, he added.

Airbus' deliveries have not yet recovered to the pre-pandemic peak of 2019, which is closely linked to supply chain bottlenecks, Xu pointed out. China’s supply chain ecosystem will play a pivotal role in strengthening the resilience of the global aerospace industry going forward, he noted.

The number of Airbus planes in service in China has exceeded 2,000, with a market share of more than 55 percent, according to the France-based company. The country is its largest single-nation market worldwide, and the firm expecting to add over 9,000 new jets in the next 20 years, with the fleet likely topping 10,600 by 2044.

Construction is underway on a second final assembly line for the A320 family in the Chinese city of Tianjin, the report cited Erik Buschmann, chief operating officer of Airbus China, as saying. Once operational, the country will become the first with two Airbus final assembly lines, doubling the production capacity of the A320, he added.

Editor: Martin Kadiev