VOA慢速英语2019 空客公司停产全球最大客机A380（在线收听）

Airbus to Stop Making World’s Largest Passenger Plane

European aircraft maker Airbus has announced it will stop making the world’s largest passenger airplane.

欧洲飞机制造商空客公司宣布将停止生产全球最大的客机。

The French-based manufacturer said Thursday it plans to stop making the Airbus A380 in 2021. The A380 made its first test flight in 2005 and began carrying passengers two years later.

这家总部位于法国的制造商周四表示，该公司计划在2021年停止生产空客A380。A380于2005年首次试飞，并于两年之后开始搭载乘客。

The A380 is the largest commercial airplane operating today. The plane has two full levels of seating and normally is equipped to carry at least 500 people.

A380是目前运营的最大的商用飞机，这种机型有两整层座位，通常座位配置可以搭载至少500人。

The announcement came after the company experienced major drops in demand and sales of its A380 in recent years.

空客公司在发布该公告之前，经历了对A380的需求和销量的大幅下降。

In the latest decision, Emirates – Airbus’ largest buyer of the A380 – chose to cut the number of aircraft it had already ordered. Airbus officials said Emirates’ decision left the company with no “order backlog” to support continued production of the plane.

空客A380的最大买家阿联酋航空公司最近决定削减已经订购的飞机数量。空客公司官员表示，阿联酋航空公司的决定使得该公司没有“积压订单”来支持飞机的继续生产。

Airbus chief Tom Enders said the decision to end the A380 program was a “painful” one. “We’ve invested a lot of effort, a lot of resources, a lot of sweat...but we need to be realistic.”

空客公司负责人汤姆·恩德斯（Tom Enders）表示，终止A380项目的决定是痛苦的。他说：“我们投入了大量精力、资源和汗水，但是我们必须现实一点。”

The decision could affect up to 3,500 jobs. It already cost Airbus about $523 million in losses in 2018, the company said.

该决定可能会影响多达3500个岗位。该公司表示，A380项目在2018年给空客公司造成了大约5.23亿美元的亏损。

Airbus said it would enter talks with labor unions in coming weeks over jobs that could be affected. Most of the positions at risk are in France and Germany, but workers in Spain and Britain also could be affected.

空客公司表示，未来几周将会跟工会就可能受影响的工作岗位进行谈判。大多数处于风险中的岗位都在法国和德国，但是西班牙和英国的员工可能也会受到影响。

In a statement, the head of Emirates said the airline had been a strong supporter of the A380 from the beginning. It said the plane had become a favorite among many passengers and crew members. The decision to cancel the orders marked “the reality” of the current situation, the statement said.

阿联酋航空公司的负责人在一份声明中表示，该公司从一开始就是A380客机的坚定支持者。该公司称该机型曾经成为许多乘客和机组人员的最爱。声明称，取消订单的决定标志着当前现实的形势。

Emirates said it had reached a new $21.4 billion deal with Airbus to replace some of the A380 orders with A350 wide-bodies and smaller A330 planes.

阿联酋航空公司表示已经同空客公司达成一项214亿美元的新协议，用A350宽体和A330小型客机替换部分的A380订单。

Airbus has promised airline companies it will keep supporting the more than 230 A380s currently in operation.

空客公司向航空公司承诺将会继续支持目前运营的230多架A380飞机。

At first, many industry experts expected the A380 to outlast the Boeing 747, which is celebrating its 50th birthday this year. But many major airlines are increasingly turning to more mid-size planes to support regional flights.

许多行业专家最初预计A380飞机将会比今年迎来50周年庆的波音747飞机更为“长寿”。但是大型航空公司越来越转向更多的中型客机来支持区域性航班。

I’m Bryan Lynn.

Words in This Story

commercial – adj. related to buying and selling things

backlog – n. planned work in progress but not yet completed

sweat – n. liquid produced through the skin

regional – adj. relating to a particular area