Aeronautics in Atlantic France: €60 million investment for the production of Airbus’ A321 XLR

Airbus recently announced a €60 million investment in its Saint-Nazaire plant. A new production line will be created in order to assemble fuselages of the A321 XLR aircraft.

The land of aeronautics, Atlantic France hosts the second largest Airbus industrial hub in France with two production sites located near Nantes (in Bouguenais) and Saint-Nazaire (in Montoir-de-Bretagne). The latter employs 3,200 persons and works with four assembly lines used for the A320 and A321 fuselages.

Getting ready to build an upgraded A320

Despite the economic crisis, Airbus is going to invest €60 million in its Saint-Nazaire plant and create a fifth assembly line. Within two years, it will be used to assemble fuselages for the A321 XLR. The production will then be able to increase to 90 devices per month.

The aircraft A321 XLR is an upgraded version of the A320. It can carry 220 passengers and travel 8,700 kilometers non-stop with a 30% lower fuel burn per seat compared with previous generation competitor aircraft.