TELEGRAPH 30.3.09
Airbus admits it may scrap A400M military transport aircraft project
Airbus has acknowledged that its A400M military transport venture has
degenerated into a disaster and may have to be scrapped altogether.
By Ambrose Evans-Pritchard
"The aircraft can't be built under the current conditions," said
Thomas Enders, chief executive of Europe's planemaker, in an
interview with Der Spiegel.
"It is better to put an end to the horror than have horror without end."
The project has been plagued by delays and excess costs, entailing
?1.7bn (£1.57bn) in penalties.
European states have ordered 180 of the giant transporters, designed
to carry up to 32 tonnes, but France has already threatened to cut back.
The aircraft is over-weight. Its turbo-prop engines built by Rolls-
Royce and France's Snecma are under-powered. There have been serious
glitches in the software from MTU Aero Engines.
Airbus has only just recovered from the wiring debacle in the A380
superjumbo, which cost $4.8bn (£3.3bn) in delays and toppled three
Airbus chiefs.
The A380 is in service but has been grounded repeatedly and is
proving too large for most routes. It is unclear whether Airbus will
ever win enough orders to cover costs.
Germany's state-secretary for defence, Rudiger Wolf, has threatened
to pull the plug on the A400M if Berlin does not receive
clarification for the delays by early April. "I don't think it makes
any sense to struggle on to the bitter end," he said.
EADS, the Airbus mother-company, may have to repay ?5.7bn in fees to
Europe's governments if it drops the ?20bn project.
Mr Enders said Airbus had made "big mistakes" but also lashed out at
the EU and the US, deeming it "bizarre" that governments are turning
their back on aeronautics yet spending billions rescuing banks.
He said Airbus will not make "a pilgrimage to Berlin or Paris" to
plead for help. Germany, France, Spain, and Britain, which all host
Airbus plants, are loath to see a prestige venture collapse with
heavy job losses.
EADS has so far held up well through the aviation slump, making
?1.57bn in profit last year.
But the group is still delivering aircraft into orders placed during
the boom and Airbus's currency hedges are gradually running out.
In Britain, MPs on the Defence Select Committee have suggested
ditching the A400M altogether, opting for cheaper models from
Lockheed Martin and Boeing.
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