Stelia Aerospace
| Company type | Subsidiary |
|---|---|
| Industry | Aerospace |
| Predecessor | Aerolia, SOGERMA |
| Founded | January 1, 2015 in Toulouse, France |
| Founder | Airbus (by merger of two divisions) |
| Headquarters | Toulouse , France |
Area served | Worldwide |
| Products | Aerostructures, pilot seats, premium passenger seating, aircraft interior components |
| Owner | Airbus |
Number of employees | 6100 (at launch) |
| Parent | Airbus |
Stelia Aerospace (branded as STELIA Aerospace) is a France-based aerospace firm headquartered in Toulouse, specializing in the engineering and production of aerostructures, pilot seats, and high-end passenger seating mainly for commercial aircraft.
Established on 1 January 2015 by merging two Airbus divisions, Aerolia and SOGERMA, Stelia Aerospace functions as a fully owned subsidiary under Airbus.
History
Stelia Aerospace was created through the consolidation of SOGERMA and Aerolia. Founded in 1924, SOGERMA initially concentrated on maintenance, repair, and overhaul (MRO) services before expanding into aerostructures and seating solutions. Aerolia emerged in 2009 as a spin-off from Airbus France’s aerostructures activities, bringing together the Méaulte and Saint-Nazaire manufacturing sites along with a design center in Toulouse.
In 2007, EADS reorganized its aerospace divisions to optimize operations and cut expenses, driven by currency volatility and substantial investments in the Airbus A380 and A350 XWB programs. This restructuring ultimately paved the way for the creation of Stelia Aerospace.
At its launch, Stelia employed around 6,100 personnel across 11 locations. The new company continued fulfilling contracts inherited from both predecessor entities, including outfitting Airbus aircraft.
March 2017 marked the inauguration of a €70 million aeronautics manufacturing facility in Méaulte, Northern France, dedicated to producing forward fuselage sections for Airbus airliners as well as central fuselages for Bombardier’s Global 7500 business jets. By February 2018, Stelia showcased metallic fuselage panels fabricated using advanced 3D printing methods. That same year, Stelia acquired a controlling interest in Portalliance Engineering, a Toulouse-based firm specializing in digital modeling.
In October 2019, Stelia revealed plans to invest €40 million in constructing a new assembly plant in Portugal. Subsequently, in February 2020, it initiated a three-year collaboration with Bombardier on the AILE (Aile Intelligente et Légère pour l’Environnement) research initiative aimed at developing intelligent lightweight wing technologies.
Starting 1 January 2022, Stelia’s worldwide facilities were merged with other Airbus sites located in Nantes and Montoir-de-Bretagne to form the new Airbus subsidiary Airbus Atlantic.
Business activities
Stelia Aerospace’s operations are divided into three primary sectors:
- Aerostructures
- Premium-class airline seats (First Class, Business Class, Premium Economy)
- Pilot seating
Additionally, the company produces aircraft interior components.
Aerostructures
Stelia Aerospace is engaged in designing and manufacturing complete aircraft fuselage sections—from nose to tail—wings, and specialized work packages such as main landing gear bays, A400M ramp doors, and helicopter tail booms.
A large share of its portfolio involves crafting aerostructures using both composite and metallic materials. Stelia is among a select group of companies capable of delivering fully outfitted sections that integrate all tubing and wiring systems, supporting the "plug and fly" concept.
Notable aircraft parts produced include:
- Fully equipped wings for the ATR family, validated through final testing benches.
- Central fuselage sections for Bombardier’s Global 7000/8000 large business jets.
- Various components of the Airbus A220, including cockpit and aft fuselage sections.
- Parts of the Airbus BelugaXL, such as the nose section, cargo door, and upper fuselage outfitted with pre-installed electrical, hydraulic, air conditioning, and oxygen systems.
Locations
Stelia Aerospace maintains a network of 11 production sites around the globe, complemented by several administrative offices.
| Location | Country / Region | Facility type | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Toulouse | France | Industrial | Headquarters and main engineering center |
| Méaulte | France | Industrial | Assembly of nose sections and large composite components |
| Rochefort | France | Industrial | Assembly of sections and seating systems |
| Saint-Nazaire | France | Industrial | Manufacturing of detailed components |
| Mérignac | France | Industrial | Production of wings |
| Salaunes | France | Industrial | Fabrication of composite detailed parts |
| M Ghira | Tunisia | Industrial | Detailed parts production and assembly operations |
| Casablanca | Morocco | Industrial | Composite detailed parts manufacturing and assembly |
| Lunenburg, Nova Scotia | Canada | Industrial | Production of composite detailed components |
| Mirabel, Quebec | Canada | Industrial | Section assembly activities |
| Hamburg | Germany | Support office | Assistance for Airbus Final Assembly Lines |
| Bangkok | Thailand | Support office | Commercial office functions |
| Seattle | USA | Support office | Commercial office functions |
| Los Angeles | USA | Support office | Commercial office functions |
| Miami | USA | Support office | Commercial offices and airline support services |
| United Arab Emirates | UAE | Support office | Airline support services |
| Singapore | Singapore | Support office | Airline support services |
| Beijing | China | Support office | Airline support services |