Bristol-designed wings to play key role in major Vietnamese aircraft order

Wings designed in Bristol will play a key role in fulfilling a Vietnamese airline’s order for 100 aircraft to a European aerospace manufacturer.

The order for 100 Airbus A321neo aircraft announced by VietJet on Thursday morning is likely to spike investment in the sector and support jobs in Bristol and other parts of the country.

The transport secretary Heidi Alexander visited Airbus’ Filton site on the same day to see research and development in action following the low-cost airline’s major order.

“It’s great that we’ve got a world-class company that is exporting internationally”, Alexander said when speaking to Bristol24/7. “I think it’s a vote of confidence in companies like Airbus and our really excellent aerospace and engineering sector.”

The UK’s transport secretary Heidi Alexander visited Airbus’ site in Filton on Thursday to mark the Vietnamese order

While the wings for the 100 aircraft will be manufactured in North Wales, the design will be developed at Airbus’ site in Filton, with work already underway on Thursday morning.

VietJet’s order for 100 Airbus aircraft and a simultaneous deal with Rolls-Royce for 92 7000 Trent engines follows a meeting between prime minister Keir Starmer and Vietnam’s general secretary To Lam on Wednesday.

Both deals with the Vietnamese airline are expected to support thousands of jobs in Bristol, North Wales and Derby.

Alexander said that while the government’s expansion plans for Gatwick and Luton airports and a third runway proposal for Heathrow are to match people’s demands to fly, all of it must be balanced with sustainable solutions for the aviation industry.

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The UK transport secretary added: “But if we’re going to grow aviation and we’re going to increase the number of planes in the sky, we need to green aviation as well because it’s really important for the future of the planet to tackle climate change.”

A £63m investment in UK-wide demonstrator projects looking for greener fuel alternatives and a requirement of 2 per cent of fuel used in aircraft engines to come from sustainable sources under the sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) mandate introduced in January, Heidi believes, are steps towards managing carbon emissions from this sector.

VietJet’s aviation order and deal with Rolls-Royce is expected to support thousands of jobs across the country, including the Airbus site in Filton

Speaking to Bristol24/7, the UK country manager of Airbus, Sue Partridge said: “By ramping up production of our aircraft through sales like the one that’s been announced on Thursday, it enables us to be able to invest in the future and look forward to decarbonisation of aviation and investing in innovations that are to come.”

The deal with Airbus is also expected to support its 79,000 strong supply chain and 12,000 employees, while generating an estimated £5.3bn to the country’s economy each year.

Partridge also emphasised the aerospace manufacturer’s efforts towards making aviation “more sustainable” as production increases to meet the rise in demand.

She added: “It’s important that we look at reducing the carbon emissions of the aircraft as they fly.

“A big project that’s led from here in Filton is the Wing of Tomorrow project, which is focusing on the next generation of aircraft and the high-performing wings that they will fly on.”

All photos: Karen Johnson

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