China and European Aircraft giant Airbus Thursday signed a framework agreement and a letter of intent for 150 Airbus A320 aircrafts and 20 Airbus A350 airplanes.

 

The agreement and letter of intent were signed by Airbus President and CEO Louis Gallois and Li Hai, general manager of the China Aviation Supplies Import and Export Group Corp.

 

It represents the largest deal in the history of the Chinese aviation industry.

 

Chinese President Hu Jintao and visiting French President Jacques Chirac attended the signing ceremony at the Great Hall of the People.

 

"We are very pleased to see the healthy and fast growth of China's aviation industry. We are willing to provide more advanced Airbus planes for Chinese airlines," said the Airbus CEO.

 

For his part, Li Hai said, "We are happy to sign the biggest deal in the history of China's aviation industry with Airbus. This will be a new milestone in the history of bilateral cooperation."

 

He added, "We are also happy to introduce the advanced Airbus A350 wide-body planes to Chinese airlines. We believe more Chinese airlines will choose the new type of airplanes."

 

Since the first Airbus A310-200 plane entered the Chinese market in 1985, the number of Airbus planes operating on the Chinese mainland rose from less than 30 in 1995 to more than 300 by the end of September this year, according to official data.

 

Currently, more than 2,800 Airbus A320 planes are operating in more than 180 airlines around the world. There are orders around the globe for 4,400 A320's.

 

(Xinhua News Agency October 27, 2006)