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Under a clear blue sky and surrounded by enthusiastic crowds, French President Jacques Chirac, Minister of Defence Michele Alliot-Marie and Minister of Transport Dominique Perben, inaugurated Le Bourget 2005.
BY A CORRESPONDENT
June 13, 2005: Accompanied by EADS Chairman Arnaud Lagardère, Airbus President and CEO Noël Forgeard, Airbus Chief Operating Officer Gustav Humbert and Vice President Flight Division Claude Lelaie, who piloted the A380’s first flight, the official party began their visit to the show with a close-up look at the A380, taking the opportunity to tour the inside of the aircraft before it left the static display to prepare for the inaugural flight display.
With their every move closely followed a flock of journalists, President Chirac’s party visited Airbus suppliers Eurocopter and shareholder EADS, then moved on to the Airbus stand for a look at the gleaming A380 and A350 models and the full scale, double-deck, A380 cabin mock-up that are drawing crowds at this year’s show.
The official party also visited several of Airbus’ suppliers and industrial partners attending the show from China and Russia as well as other parts of Europe. Pausing to talk with journalists on-route about the A380, Michele Alliot-Marie said: “It’s a really amazing aircraft.”
And the A380 continued to ‘amaze’ crowds with the much anticipated fly past providing a breathtaking end to the Presidential tour and giving the delighted onlookers a sneak preview of the flying display scheduled for this afternoon.
BY A CORRESPONDENT
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