Canada’s aerospace systems and component manufacturer, Magellan Aerospace Co. has recently extended its agreement with European aerospace corporation, Airbus SE to provide A350’s center wing boxes and related components.
Haydn Martin, Vice-President of New Business Development at Magellan Aerospace, has been quoted to say that the six-year extended contract would call for the company to continue delivering components from its UK factory to Nantes, France, where Airbus assembles A350’s center wing boxes. The aluminum-lithium wing boxes, that comprise several beams, ribs and struts, will effectively hold the wings to the aircraft’s fuselage, claims Martin.
Reportedly, Magellan, in addition to the wing boxes, makes A350’s keel beam, which runs down the center wing box, and makes structures that hold luggage bins inside A350’s fuselage at its Poland facility.
Moreover, the company also manufactures machined parts for A330 and A380 wing ribs, wing spars and other A320 components, and charges Airbus around C$140 million ($107 million) for its aircraft components and works done on the A350 segment, cite sources.
For the record, Airbus delivered the first A350, an A350-900 variant, to Qatar Airways in 2014. Airline businesses worldwide reportedly operate about 210 A350s, while Airbus currently holds outstanding orders for around 678 of its aircrafts.
Sources cite that the recent announcement of Magellan’s extended A350 contract comes at a time when the company announced its third quarter net profit of C$18.6 million. However, Magellan’s revenue from its European operations stepped 14.8% down in the Q3 largely due to declining widebody production rates.
Commenting on the updated agreement, Martin added that the contract extension is attained through a combination of validated operational excellence and market competitive pricing. As a strategic partner to the Airbus Group, Magellan will continue to align its technology investments and manufacturing expertise to meet its current and future requirements.
