HITCO Carbon Composites, Inc., an affiliate of SGL Carbon Group, recently celebrated the delivery of the first operational ship set of carbon fiber tail structure parts for the vertical tail plane of the Airbus A380. Ceremonies were held at HITCO Carbon Composites' Gardena, Calif., facility. On hand for the ceremony was Allan McArtor, chairman of Airbus North America, who accepted the structure on Airbus' behalf. The component is a large carbon fiber composite structure that forms the skeleton of the vertical stabilizer on the aircraft's tail assembly. "Composite elements like those from HITCO are among the keys to making the A380 state of the art from a technological perspective," said McArtor. "Composites save weight, saving weight saves fuel, and saving fuel is better for the environment and for our customers' bottom lines. I continue to be heartened by the level of quality we secure with supplier contracts here in the U.S. with companies like HITCO."

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