About us
Elbe Flugzeugwerke
EFW has a rich heritage in aviation dating back to its founding in 1955. In that time we have successfully overcome many potential issues, such as the fall of the Berlin Wall, the financial crisis and the COVID pandemic. The result is that in overcoming these hurdles, EFW has become the company it is today: a company of international growth and a well-recognized name in the aviation market.
Key Figures
- 2,000+Employees
- 55,000Different Shapes and Layups in Composite Solutions
- 250+Converted Freighters
- 40+Customers Worldwide
Locations
In just 3 years we have grown from 3 locations to 9 global sites. Our central P2F and composites base in Dresden, and additional composites site in Kodersdorf, are now supported from 8 other worldwide sites.
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Our history
Since its foundation EFW and its predecessors (VEB Elbe Flugzeugwerke, VEB Elbe Flugzeugwerft) have achieved many successes and overcome many challenges. From development of the first German commercial jet plane through the fall of the Berlin Wall to being one of the world's leading passenger to freighter conversion companies, you can read about our achievements and milestones in our long history here...
1955 - 1961: Development of the 1st German commercial jet airplane "Baade 152" and series production of the Soviet airliner "Ilyushin 14" (IL 14P) 
1961 - 1990: VEB Flugzeugwerft Dresden maintains over 2000 military aircrafts and 300 helicopters of the army of Warsaw Pact and other countries. 
1989 - 1991: The Fall of the Berlin Wall - Safeguarding the aviation hub takes top priority. This success includes securing over 100 orders for the Fokker 100 and 70 between 1991 and 1996. 
1992: Production of components for super transporter A300-600ST "Beluga". 
1993: Airbus relocates production of composite components to Dresden. 
1996: First conversion of A310 commercial airliner into cargo freighter. 
1998 - 2001: Conversion of A310 into Multi Role Transporter and Multi Role Tanker Transport for the German Air Force and Royal Canadian Air Force. 
2000: Launch of stand alone MRO for passenger airliner as a business segment with more than 400 events for A319 - A380. 
2005 - 2008: Hall 240 (background) is converted into a dispatch center for composite components. The 1,000,000th panel is manufactured and the handover ceremony takes place in 2008. 
2013: CCI-Assembly (background) founded as subsidiary for the production of composite components in Kodersdorf. 
2014: First A380 MRO project for Airbus as a client. Further MRO events were carried out for Emirates, Lufthansa, Quantas like complete cabin modifications. 
2015: ST Engineering becomes main shareholder alongside Airbus and is development partner of the Airbus freighter conversion programs A330P2F, A321P2F und A320P2F. 
2017: Major investment in big Hangar 230 - securing EFW's core business: retrofitting and maintenance. 
2018: Foundation and ground-breaking ceremony: acosa becomes 2nd production location for leightweight components as subsidiary of Elbe Flugzeugwerke GmbH. 
2019: Heavy maintenance for first NH90 helicopters of the German Armed Forces. 
2017 – 2022: In just five years, we launched the A330P2F, A320P2F and A321P2F programs. New conversion sites are established on three other continents and secured EFW's main business area.
