Tuesday, January 12, 2010

Airbus A400M project in jeopardy

According to Thomas Enders, CEO of Airbus, there is a 50-50 chance that the A400 military transporter may be scrapped unless the European nations that placed orders for the aircraft (Britain, France, Germany, Spain, Luxembourg, Belgium, & Turkey) agree to share the cost of several billion euros in additional development costs.  The 7 nations have until a self-imposed deadline of January 31st to come to a decision on the additional financing and a new delivery schedule for the A400M.  If the project is abandoned, as much as 40,000 jobs in Europe could be affected, a significant economic impact which I am certain is being thoroughly considered by the 7 countries, especially amidst the global economic crisis.  But one man's loss is another man's gain: if the A400M is indeed canceled, then Europe could potentially turn to alternative aircraft (Boeing's C-17 Globemaster III perhaps) to replace their aging transport fleet.

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