AIRBUS INDUSTRIE members and Alenia have reached a broad consensus on the need to establish a new European aerospace joint venture to partner China in the development of the proposed AE-100 regional jet.
The planned new Airbus-led consortium is intended to take over Aero International (Regional)'s (AI(R)'s) partnership with Aviation Industries of China (AVIC). It is hoped to finalise the structure of the venture shortly.
"The clear intent is to give leadership to Airbus Industrie," says a European aerospace official. "This is broadly accepted today, with everybody having agreed on the principles".
With the entry of the Airbus partnership, European participation in the AE-100 will be further widened to include Daimler-Benz and CASA of Spain. Unlike its AI(R) partners, Aerospatiale and British Aerospace, Alenia is not a member of the Airbus family.
In an effort to accommodate Alenia, Airbus is discussing forming a new special-purpose joint venture to work with China, along the lines of AI(R))'s subsidiary Aero International Asia. The size of Alenia's stake in the new consortium, referred to as Airbus Industrie Asia, has still to be agreed.
AVIC has been pressing Airbus for some time to assume leadership of European involvement in the AE-100 programme. China wants to integrate its 100-seater into the Airbus range and take advantage of the consortium's worldwide marketing and after-sales support network (Flight International, 4-10 September).
Talks with China, in the meantime, are continuing across a range of contractual issues, including the size of the AE-100 aircraft, partner work-share, funding and management of the project.
The three sides are still aiming to reach an overall agreement by the end of the year, but sources caution that talks may yet be put back until the new year.
Airbus will lead Europe's involvement in China's AE-100 project.
Source: Flight International
