Workers unload the nose section of an A320 aircraft. [Photo by Yan Dongjie/chinadaily.com.cn]

The major components for the A320 aircraft series to be assembled in Tianjin have arrived at Tianjin Port aboard the COSCO Shipping Sagittarius, which sailed from Europe. The vessel docked at the Tianjin Port Pacific International Container Terminal on Sunday.

The delivery comes as Airbus marks 40 years of cooperation with China's aviation industry and 30 years since the A320 single-aisle series entered the Chinese market. More than 2,200 Airbus aircraft are currently in operation in China, around a third of which were assembled at the Tianjin final assembly line.

Tianjin Port now operates round-the-clock, all-weather handling for major components of the Airbus A320 series.

The unloading time has been cut from two hours to 40 minutes, the record number of components unloaded in a single operation has risen to 11, and the annual frequency of deliveries has grown from four to 68, with an industry record of "zero defects" maintained for 17 consecutive years.

Li Wentao, deputy manager at TPCT's Operation Management Department, said the team had developed an "Airbus TCU Receiving and Unloading Process Quality Plan" through years of practice, achieving 100 percent operational accuracy and reducing the average unloading time per component by 12 percent.

"In order to ensure truly zero errors in unloading when the ships carrying major Airbus components arrive at the port, we have custom-built exclusive balance frames, transport vehicles, and storage sites for them. We have made careful advance plans for the shipping routes of the cargo ships, and our technical personnel have conducted multiple drills and continuous optimizations for the operation plans in advance," said Zhao Weifeng, duty manager of the Operation Management Department of TPCT.

The second A320 final assembly line in Tianjin is nearing completion. Tianjin Port Group has prepared new logistics solutions to meet Airbus's expanded production capacity over the next five years, a move expected to boost the city's aviation industry.