During the course of a state visit to China by French President Nicolas Sarkozy on 24-27 November.

* During the course of a state visit to China by French President Nicolas Sarkozy on 24-27 November, Airbus signed an MoU with the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) to formalise the commitment of allocating five per cent of the A350XWB airframe to the Chinese aviation industry. According to the MoU on Strengthening Industrial Cooperation through A350XWB, NDRC and Airbus will carry out high-level industrial cooperation on A350XWB development and manufacturing work, in order to enhance a closer strategic cooperation relationship between Airbus and the Chinese aviation industry. Airbus has confirmed plans to manufacture five per cent of the airframe of the A350XWB aircratt in China. Airbus says it will actively involve Chinese enterprises in the A350XWB project to develop the current cooperation and prepare for further possible cooperation for future programmes. The co-development of A350XWB Work Packages is seen as the key condition to guarantee the success of such cooperation. Airbus also signed a Heads of Agreement (HoA with China Aviation Industry Corporation II (AVIC II) to develop a new cooperation model to support A350XWB industrialization. A joint venture manufacturing centre is to be established n Harbin by Airbus and Harfei Aviation Industry Company Ltd, a subsidiary of AVIC II, to produce composite rnaterial parts and components for Airbus A350XWB. The manufacturing centre is expected to be established in the first quarter of 2009. The production scale of the manufacturing centre shall correspond to the work packages for the A350XWB allocated to the manufacturing centre and may be enlarged based on the future Business Plan. Six Chinese manufacturers are already involved in manufacturing parts, such as wing components, emergency-exit doors and maintenance tools for Airbus aircraft. In July 2005, the Airbus (oBeijing) Engineering Centre was formally inaugurated in Beijing. In June 2006, Airbus signed a joint venture contract with a Chinese Consortium comprising Tianjin Free Trade Zone, AVIC I and AVIC II for the establishment of an A320 Family Final Assembly Line in China. So far, the FAL project is proceeding on schedule. The total value of industrial cooperation between Airbus and the Chinese aviation industry is expected to be near 200 million dollars per year in 2010 and 450 million dollars per year in 2015.