Airbus to buy part of Belfast-based Spirit AeroSystems

Airbus is set to take over some of the Belfast-based Spirit AeroSystems operations.

Spirit is Northern Ireland's largest manufacturing employer, employing approximately 3,500 people.

Airbus will control part of the business that makes the wings and fuselages of the A220 jet.

Spirit Airlines has said it will sell the non-Airbus parts of its Belfast operations separately, but there is uncertainty as to how that will work.

This part of the business involves a variety of work on Bombardier's business jets.

Ulster Unionist MP Steve Aiken said Airbus taking over only the A220 operations “leaves significant doubts about the remainder of the Spirit business” and called for economy ministers to provide “urgent clarity” on the issue.

The structure of the deal is likely to cause anxiety among trade unions and Northern Ireland's manufacturing industry.

The trade union Unite estimates that around 40 per cent of staff at the Belfast facility work in non-Airbus roles.

Earlier this year, Spirit Airlines UK chairman Sir Michael Ryan wrote to local stakeholders warning that “any dissolution of the business would be extremely detrimental to the long-term future of the Belfast operation and therefore the local aerospace industry.”

In the letter, seen by the Financial Times, he said that while the physical buildings could be separated, the company's organisation and ecosystem was “integrated”, bringing “economies of scale, technological synergies, skills and flexibility”.

Spirit Airlines' broader global operations are split between Boeing and Airbus, the world's biggest aircraft makers.

Spirit was formed in 2005 as a spinoff from Boeing's operations.

Monday's deal was initiated by Boeing, which wants to build Spirit Airlines planes in-house again as part of an effort to address manufacturing problems.

Boeing will pay $4.3 billion (£3.3 billion) for the acquisition, while Spirit will pay Airbus $559 million (£440.6 million), reflecting the fact that some of the businesses Airbus is buying are currently loss-making.

In addition to the Belfast plant, Airbus will acquire control of two Spirit factories in the United States, one in France and one in Morocco.

Spirit Airlines' operations in Prestwick, Scotland, were not included in the transaction and will be sold separately.

Airbus said the contract is “aimed at ensuring security of supply” for its commercial aircraft programs, both operationally and financially.

Spirit Airlines has had a presence in Northern Ireland since acquiring Bombardier Airlines' operations in 2019.

At the time, the deal ended a long period of uncertainty for workers.

Spirit Airlines announced earlier this year that it would invest in its Belfast factory and hire more staff as it expands A220 production.

Airbus wants to increase the A220's production rate by 50% in 2024, and then increase it further in 2025.