Boeing and Airbus have both finalized significant purchases of Spirit AeroSystems assets, adding thousands of new employees to their operations and reshaping commercial aircraft production.
In two separate statements issued on December 8, 2025, the manufacturers confirmed the acquisition of key Spirit AeroSystems assets and their integration into their respective businesses.
Boeing brings Spirit’s core commercial work back in-house
Boeing confirmed that the acquisition includes all of Spirit’s Boeing-related commercial operations, including fuselages for the 737 program and major structures for the 767, 777, and 787 Dreamliner. It also covers commercially procured fuselages for the P-8 and KC-46 military platforms.
This deal also brings Boeing’s largest spare-parts supplier in-house, broadening Boeing’s global maintenance, repair, and overhaul (MRO) services, and enhancing the manufacturer’s rotable, lease, and exchange portfolio through Spirit’s aftermarket businesses.
Under the new structure, Spirit AeroSystems’ commercial and aftermarket operations in the US, plus Spirit’s Aerospace Innovation Center in Prestwick, Scotland, will begin integrating into Boeing. In total, about 15,000 employees from these locations join the company.
“This is a pivotal moment in Boeing’s history and future success as we begin to integrate Spirit AeroSystems’ commercial and aftermarket operations and establish Spirit Defense,” said Boeing CEO Kelly Ortberg. “Our focus is on maintaining stability so we can continue delivering high-quality airplanes.”
Boeing has also taken over parts of Spirit’s operations in Belfast, Northern Ireland. The Belfast facility will now function as an independent subsidiary under the name ‘Short Brothers’.
Airbus absorbs Spirit sites across four countries
In a separate statement released the same day, Airbus announced that it has completed its acquisition of key Spirit AeroSystems industrial assets for USD 439 million, taking over sites in the US, France, Morocco, and the United Kingdom.
The move brings over 4,000 employees into Airbus and adds production of fuselage sections, wings, and other components for the A220, A320, and A350 programs.
“This milestone marks a special moment for all of us at Airbus. We are proud to welcome over 4,000 new colleagues, with whom we will embark on a new chapter in our industrial operations,” said Florent Massou, Executive Vice President Operations for Airbus’ Commercial Aircraft business.
The end of Spirit as a standalone aerostructures supplier
For Spirit AeroSystems, the transactions mark the effective end of the company as an independent, multi-OEM aerostructures supplier. Once spun out of Boeing in 2005 to serve a diversified customer base, Spirit is now being broken up largely along customer lines, with aircraft programs reverting to their original OEMs.
Years of operational strain, mounting quality issues, and financial pressure, amplified by production disruptions at Boeing, gradually eroded the logic of maintaining Spirit at arm’s length. The split reinforces a return to vertical integration, with Boeing and Airbus concluding that critical structures such as fuselages and wings are too central to aircraft certification, delivery schedules, and quality control to be left outside direct oversight.
