FINAL ASSEMBLY of the first 124-seat Airbus A319 has begun at Daimler-Benz Aerospace Airbus' Hamburg site. Assembly of the major airframe components began on 23 March. The A319 - the smallest member of the Airbus family - is the second Airbus type after the A321 to be assembled at the German site.
The CFM International CFM56-5B-powered A319 is to be rolled out in late August, with its first flight scheduled for September and delivery to launch customer Swissair to take place soon after type certification in April 1996.
Airbus has received firm orders for 71 of the type to date, including an order for 20 from Lufthansa, 25 from Air Canada, 14 from ILFC and nine from French domestic carrier Air Inter.
Source: Flight International