Wichita ? A top official at Airbus says the Boeing Co.’s decision to close its Wichita plant will likely have a favorable impact on Airbus operations.

Airbus Americas chairman Allan McArtor commented Monday during a celebration of the 10th anniversary of Airbus’ engineering center in Wichita. The Airbus center had 27 employees when it first opened and now employs more than 350 people.

McArtor says he expects Airbus to get some good employees from Boeing’s closed defense plant.

Boeing announced earlier this year that will shut down its Wichita operations by 2013 and send work to plants in three other states. Boeing employs 2,160 people in Wichita, where it has been a major employer for generations.

Airbus officials say it has no interest in Boeing’s Wichita facility.