CRI听力: Airbus delivers first China-assembled A320 jet

Airbus has delivered its first China-assembled A320 jet in the northern port city of Tianjin.

The assembly line in Tianjin is also the aircraft manufacturer's only final assembly line outside Europe.

The aircraft had conducted a successful four-hour test flight on May 18 from the Tianjin Binhai International Airport, and it will first fly on the Chengdu-Beijing route on Wednesday. (www.hXen.com)

At the delivery ceremony on Tuesday, Thomas Enders, Airbus president and CEO, said the A320 planes assembled in Tianjin shared the same standards as those made in Europe.

He added that the Airbus will further cooperate with the Chinese air industry.

"We have today roughly 500 airbus aircrafts in service in China and the number is growing. We will be working steadily, increasingly with our partners in China, setting new standards in aviation and international cooperation."

With an investment of more than one billion U.S. dollars, the Tianjin assembly plant started operation in September 2008.

According to industry estimates, China will need about 3,000 passenger aircrafts over the next 20 years.