Latest news with #TimHepher
Time of India
14 hours ago
- Business
- Time of India
Macron challenges Europe to rival US, China in space
By Tim Hepher, Giulia Segreti, Makini Brice PARIS: President Emmanuel Macron threw France's backing behind plans for a European satellite manufacturing champion and called for accelerated deployment of Starlink-type satellites as he declared space the new theatre for world power competition. Speaking at the Paris Airshow on Friday, after France moved to take control of Starlink competitor Eutelsat , Macron called for an energetic push spanning launchers to manufacturing and services as he set out a strategy to counter the sprawling rocket-to-telecoms interests of U.S. billionaire Elon Musk. Staged amid the conflict between Israel and Iran, the world's largest aerospace event has mostly been dominated by geopolitical and trade tensions and fragile supply chains, rather than the usual glittering jetliner order announcements. On Friday, attention turned from defence displays to space. "At the intersection of all these public and private questions, as well as civil, military, scientific and industrial ones, space has in some way become a gauge of international power," Macron said in a speech to delegates. Europe has taken a lead in Earth observation but has struggled for years to keep up with the United States and China in a domain now considered as strategic as the planet's oceans. It lost independent access to orbit for more than a year in 2023 following technical problems, delays and a breakdown of ties with Russia over Ukraine that halted use of Soyuz rockets. Despite Europe being the world's largest exporter of satellites, its two main manufacturers - Airbus and a tie-up between Thales and Italy's Leonardo - have struggled to make money and want to pool those activities. "They have our full support and confidence. I want us to build this new champion as soon as possible," Macron said. "This is what will allow us, as Europeans, to have the scale to improve competitiveness and volume. It's a sector consolidation." Under pressure from Musk's cheaper low Earth-orbit Starlink satellites and a shift away from bespoke satellites in higher orbit, Airbus, Thales and Leonardo have said they are discussing plans code-named Project Bromo to forge a combined venture. Previous efforts to pool satellite-making have been thwarted by competition concerns. DEFENCE SPENDING In a third battleground, the importance of satellite services and connectivity has been highlighted by Ukraine. On Thursday, France agreed to inject $1.55 billion into debt-laden Eutelsat, sending its shares soaring. U.S. and Chinese spending on space dwarfs European budgets and insiders say industrial squabbling has curbed co-operation. The European Space Agency says the U.S. accounted for nearly two-thirds of the global space budget in 2023; Europe just 11%. Space budgets may get a lift from defence funds flowing into the sector. But fiscal room for Macron's new agenda is tight. "Partnership between public and private capital will be needed and this requires a considerable effort", said Jean-Pierre Darnis, associate fellow at the Foundation for Strategic Research. France is struggling to get public finances under control after spending spiralled higher last year. Europe is already hiking defence spending after U.S. President Donald Trump's team made clear that the United States was no longer willing to be the main guarantor of Europe's security. "The big story of this show is sovereignty in the wake of some of the statements by (Trump) questioning U.S. commitment to Europe and to NATO," said Vago Muradian, founder of the Defense & Aerospace Report. Macron flew into Le Bourget days before a NATO summit on a French Air Force A400M transport plane - itself a symbol of Europe's shifting priorities after years of battles over costs. The future of Europe's troop plane had been under threat after some of its European NATO sponsor nations including France and Spain slowed the pace of deliveries or cut their orders. Exports have also fallen short of expectations. But Airbus signed an agreement with procurement agency OCCAR at the show to stabilise production until 2029. Weapons makers and buyers are increasingly touting the label "ITAR-free" to avoid getting caught up in U.S. export controls for certain components, a senior European industry official said. ITAR stands for International Traffic in Arms Regulations. Some U.S. suppliers are scoping out ways of offering ITAR-free product lines to avoid being left out by the European spending wave, analysts said. The commercial side of the show fell silent on Friday after being overshadowed by last week's crash of an Air India Boeing 787 jet in India. Boeing sat out any announcements as Airbus and Embraer rolled out deals earlier in the week. Some airlines are shunning such shows to announce purchases in Washington or other capitals as aircraft become a currency of choice in a new style of transactional politics, delegates said. Organisers said the show nonetheless had record attendance.
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Airbus strikes deal for up to 150 planes with VietJet
By Tim Hepher PARIS (Reuters) -Airbus struck a deal on Tuesday to sell up to 150 single-aisle aircraft to Vietnamese budget airline VietJet, as the European planemaker continues to rack up business at the Paris Airshow. The companies said they had signed a memorandum of understanding for VietJet to buy 100 more A321neo planes, with the option to add up to a further 50 to the deal in future. The agreement confirmed an earlier Reuters story. A deal for 150 A321neos could be worth around $9.4 billion, according to estimated prices provided by Cirium Ascend. "These modern and efficient aircraft have been instrumental in VietJet's growth," VietJet Chairwoman Nguyen Thi Phuong Thao said in a statement released at a press conference attended by a delegation including several Western bankers. "This landmark agreement represents a vital step in VietJet's growth strategy as a multi-national aviation group." The planes will be delivered from 2030 onwards, and VietJet said it had financing in place for the deal. European planemaker Airbus has announced a flurry of deals at the Paris Airshow, the world's biggest aviation trade fair that opened on Monday. U.S. rival Boeing is expected to have a more subdued show as it focuses on the probe into last week's fatal crash of an Air India Boeing 787 and after it racked up huge deals during U.S. President Donald Trump's recent tour of the Middle East. VietJet, the largest private airline in Vietnam, operates an all-Airbus fleet, apart from two Chinese-made regional jets. The airline has not to date taken delivery of any of the around 200 MAX planes it has ordered from Boeing. Airbus is the main supplier of jets to Vietnam, accounting for 86% of the planes currently operated by Vietnamese airlines. However, the export-dependent Southeast Asian country is under pressure from Washington to buy more U.S. goods. VietJet's latest deal comes only weeks after it ordered 20 A330neo wide-body airliners from Airbus. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Zawya
5 days ago
- Business
- Zawya
Riyadh Air orders 25 Airbus A350-1000 jets
Saudi startup Riyadh Air signed a deal at the Paris Airshow on Monday to buy 25 Airbus A350-1000 jets, the planemaker said. The deal, announced shortly after Saudi leasing company AviLease placed an order for Airbus passenger and freighter jets, also includes purchase rights for another 25 planes, Airbus said. Airbus does not publish catalogue prices but the firm part of the Riyadh Air deal is worth around $4.6 billion after typical airline discounts, according to Cirium Ascend estimates. (Reporting by Tim Hepher. Editing by Mark Potter)
Yahoo
12-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Paris airshow set for new jet orders despite conflict, tariff gloom
By Tim Hepher and Joe Brock PARIS (Reuters) -Aerospace manufacturers will aim to project business as usual with big-ticket aircraft orders at next week's Paris Airshow, despite U.S. tariffs, escalating conflicts and fragile supply chains rattling the global aviation and defence industries. The world's largest aviation trade show, running from June 16 to 20 in Le Bourget, gives aircraft and arms manufacturers a key stage to showcase cutting-edge technologies such as AI and autonomy, while making headline-grabbing order announcements. Airbus may kick off the event with two key Saudi orders on Monday, illustrating strong air travel growth in the Gulf, while facing last-minute competition from Brazil's Embraer for a potential order for some 100 small A220 jets from AirAsia. Boeing is expected to secure the bulk of a fleet shake-up by long-time customer Royal Air Maroc but is heading for a quieter week than its rival after pre-empting the show with big orders during U.S. President Donald Trump's recent visit to the Gulf. Behind the scenes, civil planemakers, as well as defence and supply-chain giants such as Lockheed Martin and Raytheon, will be grappling with the uncertain repercussions of Trump's volatile tariff announcements and simmering conflicts. "We were just getting our heads out of the water (post-COVID) and some of our tier-2 and tier-3 suppliers were just beginning to breathe again, and now this uncertainty," the CEO of Airbus' planemaking business, Christian Scherer, said. A U.S.-Chinese deal to restore a fragile trade truce lifted spirits ahead of the global aerospace gathering but some delegates said the industry is adapting to the prospect that base tariffs of 10% could endure, while lobbying for exemptions. "Despite all this chaos, it should be a good air show for orders, particularly for Airbus, which will be on home turf," said AeroDynamic Advisory managing director Richard Aboulafia. Even so, weak supply chains and fractured alliances in trade and defence have upended years of planning for the near $1-trilion-dollar industry, days ahead of a crucial NATO summit. DEFENCE SPENDING The war in Ukraine and tension in the Middle East have disrupted airspace, re-routed cargo and passenger traffic and increased insurance costs. European nations, spurred by the war in Ukraine, are ramping up military spending at a pace not seen since the Cold War. Germany, Poland and Britain have all announced major defence budget increases, including planned spending on air defence, drones and next-generation fighter jets. The show will feature a wide array of drones, including low-cost, expendable models that proved so effective in the Ukraine war. Such platforms are increasingly viewed as essential to modern warfare, by offering a cheaper and scalable alternative to traditional manned aircraft. Many European nations are rethinking their reliance on U.S. defence support amid weakening ties under Trump, reshaping the global defence landscape as AI-powered systems gain traction and political alliances shift. "If Europeans are paying more on defence, you'd expect them to employ Europeans to build European capacity and capability in the same way the US is served by American provisions," said Byron Callan, a defence industry specialist and managing partner at Washington-based Capital Alpha Partners. "That's probably one of the most important changes that's emerged from the US election and the Russian invasion of Ukraine." Access to rare earths is another pressing topic. Environmental concerns, typically a prominent theme at air shows, will again be addressed in a dedicated display but may be relatively muted this year as Trump downplays green initiatives. At a global airline summit this month, carriers reaffirmed their commitment to net-zero targets but flagged concern over the limited availability of sustainable fuels and next-generation aircraft. A raft of high-profile studies, such as plans by Airbus for a hydrogen airliner, have slowed or stopped. Planemakers say taking delivery of current aircraft - burning at least 15% less fuel - is the fastest way to curb emissions. But deliveries have been delayed by supply problems and environmentalists say that jetmakers chasing ever more orders are baking in longer reliance on fossil fuels. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Yahoo
12-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Airbus can hit delivery goal despite delays, jetmaking CEO says
By Tim Hepher PARIS (Reuters) -Airbus is "cautiously hopeful" that it can meet a 2025 target of 820 deliveries despite bottlenecks that have left nearly 40 completed airframes parked at its factories waiting for engines, the CEO of its core planemaking business said. While overall supply chains have "improved significantly," bottlenecks remain in the supply of CFM engines for single-aisles and cabin interiors for wide-body jets, with lavatories joining the list of delays, Christian Scherer said. "We haven't changed our (delivery) guidance. I caution you not to extrapolate too much from monthly numbers," Scherer told reporters, following a recent spate of monthly declines in deliveries compared to last year. "There is a gradual increase in output of engines that we get from CFM. The reason we have not changed our outlook for the year is because we believe that between now and the end of the year we will get the engines," he said. "So it is a gradual increase - a little behind the curve at the we are cautiously hopeful that it can be done". Co-owned by GE Aerospace and France's Safran, CFM supplies more than half of the engines used on the best-selling Airbus A320neo family, competing with alternative engines from Pratt & Whitney. CFM also exclusively supplies the Boeing 737 MAX with a different engine variant. "We have nearly 40 gliders parked across our system," Scherer said, using the planemaker's nickname for planes that are otherwise complete but unable to be delivered to airlines as they wait for their engines, which are sold separately. CFM could not immediately be reached for comment. Its top executives have said it has seen improvements in its own supply chain and it is poised to recover from a slow start to the year. On underlying jet production, a barometer for supply chains, Scherer said Airbus was on its way towards a goal of assembling 75 A320neo-family jets a month in 2027. Most analysts remain cautious about when the already delayed goal can be reached. "On single-aisle (A320neo-family) we are on track to do that (75 a month) and we are just cruising past 60 (a month). We are trending in the right direction into the 60s," Scherer said. Airbus rarely discusses detailed monthly production goals in public, having dropped an interim target of 65 a month in 2023. Reuters reported in January that Airbus was closing in on production of 60 jets a month, around pre-COVID levels. Scherer was speaking during briefings on Airbus market forecasts and products ahead of the Paris Airshow next week. Airline demand for jets remains "very strong," he said. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
