Gallery: Airbus opens fourth Hamburg A320 family FAL

Airbus replaced fixed jigs with mobile tooling platforms (MTPs), on which aircraft sections and wings are placed. There are three pairs of MTPs for fuselage sections and two pairs for wings. Following the joining of the forward and rear fuselage sections at what is still called station 41, the two MTPs are laser-guided to jointly move in precision to avoid stress on the airframe. Station 40 is used to mate the wings to the fuselage.

Another view of the mobile tooling platforms (MTPs).

Holes for the circumferential joint between the fuselage sections are now drilled by two robots, which employees named “Luise” and “Renate.” 

A higher degree of automation and robotics is used. Manual labor is much reduced in the process. About 80% of the 2,800 holes are to be drilled by the robots. This process takes about 17 to 18 hours. The aircraft stays in each station for two days – moving from one station to another takes two hours.

One of many Airbus A320neos that have not been delivered to the customer because of delayed deliveries from engine suppliers.

An A350-1000 test aircraft and an A320, both without engines at Finkenwerder.

Airbus A320 program head Klaus Roewe speaks at the press conference. He said up to 10 A320s could be built per month in the new production line from 2019 onward.

The layout of the new A320 production line at Hamburg Finkenwerder. Airbus believes it has now defined the blueprint for future new product lines and technologies it can back feed into its legacy system.

Airbus workers joined the official opening ceremony.

A walk through the new production line for Airbus A320 family aircraft.

Air Asia A320. The engines for the aircraft will be installed at this station.

Frank Rocksien, head of the fourth A320 assembly line, explains project details.

One of the two robots, named "Luise."

"Luise." These kind of robotics will play an important role in digitalization and more automation across Airbus’ production system in the future.

From left: Airbus Commercial head-Germany Klaus Richter; Airbus A320 family program head Klaus Roewe; Hamburg senator of economy Frank Horch; Airbus Commercial president Guillaume Faury; and Airbus A320 family FAL head Olaf Lawrenz.

Under construction, an Airbus A321 for Vietnam-based VietJet. 

The TV screen demonstrates how aircraft parts can be shifted around from one station to the next. To date, six aircraft have been completed at the new production line, with a seventh to leave the new line imminently.