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(Toulouse, France) is establishing an Airbus Tech Hub in Korea. Located in Daejeon, the heart of the nation’s R&D ecosystem, the facility will serve as a dedicated center for collaborative research and innovation, solidifying Korea’s role as a strategic technology partner.

The Airbus Tech Hub will focus on three key research pillars leveraging Korea’s industrial strengths: the development of future energy technologies, advanced lightweight composites as well as next-generation defense and space technologies.

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The Airbus Tech Hub in Korea is being established in close collaboration with the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Resources (MOTIR), and Daejeon Metropolitan City.

“After five decades of successful industrial partnership with Korea, this step to launch the Airbus Tech Hub in Daejeon is a clear signal of our deepening commitment. The Tech Hub allows Airbus to tap into advanced technologies in Korea, which will help fast-track future aircraft technologies and continue to develop Korea as our trusted, long-term partner,” says Mark Bentall, head of R&T program at Airbus. Bentall adds that Daejeon, with its concentration of R&D institutes and talent, is the ideal choice, offering “the perfect synergy between advanced academia and industrial ambition, making it the essential base for joint development of future technologies that will drive the industry forward.”

Airbus’ substantial industrial presence is anchored by long-standing partnerships with Tier 1 suppliers like Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) and Korean Air Aerospace Division (KAL-ASD).

To accelerate the Tech Hub’s mission, Airbus signed three memorandums of understanding (MOU) during the launch ceremony. The first MOU, signed with MOTIR, establishes a framework enabling Airbus to swiftly launch research and innovation projects within Daejeon’s technology ecosystem. The second MOU, signed with Daejeon City, also outlines a commitment to support and expedite Airbus’ research and innovation initiatives across the city’s technological landscape. The third MOU, with the Korea International Trade Association (KITA), focuses on leveraging KITA’s open innovation platform in Korea to source and engage new partners identified based on the Airbus technology focus areas.

Among the projects announced at the launch of the Airbus Tech Hub in Korea, Airbus is partnering with LIG Nex1 to develop space chip antenna technology used for transmitting and receiving communication signals. Separately, Airbus is engaging with EMCoretech to develop active filtering technologies needed for electrification applications to suppress electromagnetic interference.

Airbus’ relationship with Korea spans more than 50 years, going back to 1974 when Korean Air ordered the original A300B4 widebody aircraft. Since then, the country has become a key customer base and partner across Airbus’ commercial aircraft, defense, space and helicopter product lines.

Airbus’ substantial industrial presence is anchored by long-standing partnerships with Tier 1 suppliers like Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) and Korean Air Aerospace Division (KAL-ASD). These partners manufacture critical components for Airbus’ global civil aircraft programs, including wing structures, fuselage assemblies and composite elements for the A320, A330 and A350 families. Numerous Korean SMEs also contribute to the supply chain. 

The Tech Hub is complemented by the recent opening of Airbus’ wholly owned subsidiary Composite Technology Centre (CTC) in Busan. CTC’s new office aims to cooperate with Busan Techno Park in the R&D of advanced composite materials and processes for aerospace. 

Korea is the fourth addition to Airbus’ global network of Tech Hubs, joining existing centers in Japan, the Netherlands and Singapore, which are designed to foster collaboration among industry leaders, academia, government agencies and startups to push boundaries of aerospace technology.