A new vessel nears completion for Airbus' A380 production system

The infrastructure for Airbus' A380 production system will soon be expanded with the addition of a new sea-going vessel that transports airframe sections of the 21st century flagship jetliner between Europe's various manufacturing countries.

This latest vessel was officially named Ciudad de Cádiz during a ceremony today in Singapore, where the roll-on/roll-off (RoRo) ferry is currently nearing completion.

Scheduled for delivery next month, the Ciudad de Cádiz will join two other ships - Ville de Bordeaux and the recently-delivered City of Hamburg, all of which are owned and operated by a joint venture of shipping companies Louis Dreyfus Armateurs of France and Norway's Höegh Autloliners.

The new vessel is named after the southern Spanish port of Cádiz, where A380 sections manufactured in Spain leave for the final assembly facilities. These sections include the horizontal tailplane, a portion of the vertical rudder and rear fuselage sections.

A total of 13 A380s have been delivered to three carriers - Singapore Airlines, Emirates and Qantas, with Air France to become the next new operator later this year.