Airbus has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the city of Chengdu and Tarmac Aerosave to develop a “sustainable aircraft lifecycle service centre” in China.

The facility, which will cover a surface area of 690,000 square metres and a storage capacity of 125 aircraft, will focus on a range of activities including aircraft parking and storage, maintenance, upgrades, conversions, dismantling and recycling services for various aircraft types.

A formal agreement to establish and frame the cooperation is planned to be signed between the partners in mid-2022.

“This is another concrete contribution to the aviation industry’s quest for sustainability, supporting the principle of a circular economy in line with Airbus’ aviation services while enabling the implementation of China’s Green Industry’ strategy,” said Airbus Customer Services’ SVP Klaus Roewe.

“Aircraft phase-out in China is forecast to grow exponentially over the next 20 years. Airbus is committed to investing in the region and this one-stop-shop – a first in China and outside of Europe – will see Airbus well positioned on the Chinese aircraft ‘second life’ service market.”

The new centre is expected to open at the end of 2023, subject to relevant regulatory approvals.