Airbus in Portugal

Domestic footprint

Airbus in Portugal

Airbus has had a strong growing bilateral relationship with Portugal for more than 50 years.

The country is a key contributor to all Airbus programs, from commercial aircraft assemblies to helicopter electric switchboards, from machining to composite assembly. Airbus has more than 1,400 direct employees in the country and sources over €70 million annually from its supply chain partners in the Country.

Airbus Atlantic (wholly owned Airbus subsidiary) has a plant in Santo Tirso, referred to as Airbus Atlantic Portugal, near Porto. It is specialised in fuselage metallic sub-assembly activities for the Airbus A350 and the A320 Family, with already more than 350 employees and is continuously growing.

Airbus Global Business Services (Airbus GBS) operations started in July 2021. Headquartered in Lisbon and with offices also in Coimbra, Airbus Portugal S.A., a fully owned subsidiary of Airbus SAS, already has more than 1,000 experts at work on managing administrative, transactional, reporting and IT services, mainly in support of Airbus' Finance, HR, Procurement, IM, Engineering, Communication, Customer Services, Legal and Compliance.

Our products & services

As a trusted partner of the Portuguese aerospace industry, Airbus supports the airline operators with the most modern commercial aircraft and aviation support services and the government with the top-notch defence capabilities and advanced space technologies.

Commercial Aircraft in Portugal

Our products & services

Airbus counts three major Portuguese customers and operators: TAP Air Portugal, Hi-Fly and SATA Azores Airlines.

TAP Air Portugal was one of the very first customers for Airbus when the airline took delivery of their first A310 aircraft in 1988. Today, Airbus is Portugal’s leading provider of commercial aircraft with a total in-service fleet of over 100 aircraft operating an all-Airbus fleet (including Azores Airlines and Hi-Fly).

QinetiQ signs for four H125 for Empire Test Pilots School

Helicopters in Portugal

Our products & services

Airbus Helicopters traces its roots back to 1957 when three Alouette IIs were brought into service by the Portuguese Air Force.

Today, Airbus Helicopters accounts for 75% of the current civil and parapublic fleet in service. There are around 35 single engine H125s, the most popular helicopter model, playing a key role in the country’ firefighting efforts during the summer season.

Defence and space in Portugal

Our products & services

Airbus Defence and Space has maintained a robust relationship with Portugal for decades.

In 2006, Portugal acquired its first out of 12 C295 tactical airlifters for the Portuguese military missions and surveillance assistance. The deal also included a 30-year MRO contract (Fully Integrated Services Support). Today, Airbus Defence and Space continues to provide much needed air mission support platforms to help Portugal meet its mission objectives.

Research and development

Airbus works hand in hand with Portuguese companies on multiple European Research and Development projects.

PASSARO (caPAbilities for innovative Structural and functional teSting of AeROstructures) is a EU Clean Sky 2 project started in July 2016. It comprises eleven partners from Portugal and Spain working in close collaboration with Airbus Defence and Space pursuing common technology objectives, such as the promotion of the innovation of the Aircraft Industry at European level.

Industrial cooperation

Airbus continues to increase its direct local footprint through its subsidiaries and its supply chain with the continuous successful deployment of numerous suppliers. Over the last 3 years, Airbus has been expanding its cooperation with Portugal, identifying new areas of work to build on.

Thanks to this fruitful and collaborative work, Portugal is now building a real cluster of Tier 1 & 2 Aerospace companies with a reputation for a highly educated and reliable workforce.