Reports: Airbus to build Mobile plant

Airbus will build its first assembly line in the United States in Mobile, Ala., according to the New York Times, Bloomberg and the Mobile Press-Register. The plan calls for an investment of several hundred million dollars in a plant that could eventually assemble dozens of 150-seat A320 jets each year. The Mobile Press-Register reported the announcement will be made Monday in Mobile that Airbus plans to build A320neo aircraft at Brookley Aeroplex. Multiple company, state and local officials confirmed to the paper that an agreement was in place and that company president Fabrice Bregier was scheduled to announce the project at a 10 a.m. news conference at the Mobile Convention Center. (Source: New York Times, Bloomberg via Seattle Times, Mobile Press-Register, 06/27/12) Airbus parent EADS had planned to build a plant at Mobile's Brookley Aeroplex to assemble tankers for the Air Force, but Boeing won the contract and is building the planes in Washington state. Mobile officials continued to maintain a close relationship EADS/Airbus after the tanker loss. Mobile is also the home of an Airbus Engineering Center and military aircraft maintenance facility.