Airbus chief executive Thomas Enders said on Wednesday that his decision to build aircraft in China has paid off, with the quality matching that of Europe and the local market taking off.

"The quality of Airbus aircraft from Tianjin today is just as good as from Toulouse or Hamburg," the company's other plants in southern France and northern Germany, Enders told the German daily Die Welt.

"When I began three years ago, that was my biggest concern."

The company's goal in China, where it assembles A320 aircraft, must now be "to be seen in China also as a Chinese firm, because we are creating lots of high-tech jobs there."

Chinese air traffic increased by at least 20 percent in 2009, while falling elsewhere in the world, and will soon overtake the United States as the biggest global market, he noted.

Asked if he was worried about training future competitors in China, Enders said "we know very well how to protect our know-how," and added that Airbus would not remain a successful company if it produced aircraft only in Europe.

Airbus delivered its first Chinese-made plane on June 23 to Dragon Aviation Leasing, which turned it over to Sichuan Airlines.

The joint-venture factory, about 120 kilometres (72 miles) southeast of Beijing, is 51 percent owned by Airbus, a subsidiary of the European group EADS, and 49 percent by a Chinese aviation consortium.

The interview with Enders was to appear on Thursday but was released in advance.