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Airbus Sharpens Challenge to Boeing With Factory in U.S.

French planemaker plants flag in Boeing's backyard in Mobile
Proximity to biggest airlines and low labor costs lured Airbus

Bloomberg business news — Airbus Lays Plans to Beat Boeing in U.S.

By

Andrea Rothman and

September 13, 2015, 3:50 PM UTCCorrectedSeptember 13, 2015, 10:34 PM UTC

Airbus Group NV, challenging Boeing Co. for supremacy in the $80 billion market for large commercial airliners, is opening its first jet production site on the U.S. competitor’s home turf.

The French-based planemaker on Monday is slated to officially unveil a $600 million plant in Mobile, Alabama, although the first of the A320 jetliners to be built there have been taking shape since July. The plant is expected to spur job growth and attract aerospace suppliers to the Southeastern U.S., where Boeing and Brazil’s Embraer SA also have footholds.