Why Airbus still bets on Britain

“If I want to deliver on my promises, I need companies like Airbus to be there to help me do it.” That is what Sir Keir Starmer told Airbus during a recent meeting with the company.

That comment is a glimpse into how important Airbus is as a business to the UK and Europe. It employs around 12,000 people in the UK but supports about 79,000 more jobs through the small, medium and large businesses that supply parts to Airbus across the country.

The wings for Airbus planes are manufactured at its factory in Broughton, North Wales, and the company also has a key site in Filton, just outside Bristol. Overall, Airbus has 25 sites in the UK working across aerospace, defence, space technology and more.

This week, Airbus is playing a central role at the Farnborough Air Show, one of the biggest events in the aviation industry. On the first day, on Monday, £39bn of deals to buy new planes were announced and Airbus showed off its new plane, the A321XLR.

In this episode of the Business Leader Podcast, we look at the story behind Airbus’s business in the UK: how it works, its challenges and the future. We do so by speaking to John Harrison, the chairman of Airbus UK and the most senior Briton in the company.

“I always say it's a privilege to build the wings and not a right,” Harrison says of the UK business. “We've got to prove that we're good. I think that the UK factories are very good in terms of safety record and productivity. So, if we keep performing well, we have a very good future here. The UK is no longer part of the EU, but it's still a part of Europe and it's still part of the Airbus family.”

Airbus has one of the most complex supply chains in the business world and Harrison offers a fascinating insight into how the company manages it.

“I think the key is ‘make or buy’,” he explains. “You don't just want to be an integrator and do nothing. You need to look at the core elements – so the wings – but some of the aerostructures can be produced cheaper and better by someone else. There is a procurement strategy team that looks at what we're procuring and says: ‘Well, do we do that ourselves or do we put that out for a call for tender?’”