The president of Airbus China, Laurence Barron, spoke about the company’s recent engine problems that occurred on an A380 operated by Qantas. He expressed confidence the 5 A380s will still be handed over to China Southern Airlines next summer.

Laurence Barron, Airbus China President said "Right now there will be no change to any detail of the plane. The A380s for China Southern Airlines will be delivered on time."

In 2010, 43 percent of the planes in service in China are from the Airbus family, up from a mere 7 percent in 1995. During the last two decades in China, Airbus has set up its own manufacturing base, and four R&T centers in partnership with 5 Chinese universities. And this is only the beginning.

Among over 6-thousand Airbus planes now in service in the world, half carry components made in China. At the same time, the 5th R&T centre set up between Chinese institutions and Airbus was launched in Guangzhou this year. The Sino French cooperation in the aviation industry has indeed entered a new phase.