AINonline
• Charlotte Bailey
France has used a modified Airbus A400M Atlas to drop retardant on the Gironde megafire, with the aircraft’s cargo bay configured to carry up to 22 tonnes. The deployment highlights both the A400M’s substantial firefighting capacity and the constraints of operating a single military airlifter, including refueling near Marseille.
Airbus
Latest source-backed stories
France has used a modified Airbus A400M Atlas to drop retardant on the Gironde megafire, with the aircraft’s cargo bay configured to carry up to 22 tonnes. The deployment highlights both the A400M’s substantial firefighting capacity and the constraints of operating a single military airlifter, including refueling near Marseille.
Croatia Airlines has taken delivery of its 10th Airbus A220, featuring the carrier’s Star Alliance livery and claimed as the first A220 to carry the alliance’s colors. The arrival advances the Croatian flag carrier’s fleet modernization and ongoing transition toward newer-generation twinjets.
High activity
Spain plans to invest €1.6 billion to €2 billion in a national military satellite communications constellation that could integrate with the planned IRIS² multi-orbit network. Separately, Airbus has been selected by Hisdesat to develop and build SpainSat NG-III, a secure communications satellite for Spain.
A British Airways captain is reportedly on paid sick leave after stepping in during an incident in which a packed Airbus A320 went into a stall over central London. The reported trigger was a failure of an on-board system, prompting a near-stall situation requiring immediate crew intervention.
High activity
SES will provide LATAM’s multi-orbit, electronically steerable antenna inflight-connectivity solution across more than 60 Airbus and Embraer twinjets, including its future E195-E2 fleet. The agreement comes as SES reports declining first-half revenue and adjusted EBITDA, while saying its Iris² deal is days from completion.
Airbus CEO Guillaume Faury says he sees “good hope” for additional A400M tactical airlifter orders through a currently seven-nation NATO initiative to cooperate on combined operations. Airbus officials expect the pooled A400M plan to translate into incremental procurement among participating allies.
MTU Aero Engines CEO Johannes Bussmann cautioned that differing French and German fighter aircraft requirements could put at risk the company’s engine partnership with Safran, following the collapse of the Future Combat Air System (FCAS) program.
High activity
Farnborough coverage underscored Europe’s widening defense commitments: the UK allocated £8.6 billion to GCAP and released £8.4 billion in existing Dreadnought submarine funding, while the EU approved €3.47 billion for Ukrainian military hardware. New autonomous aircraft and sovereign-production plans highlighted the industrial implications.
Create a free account to see more recent Airbus stories and keep bookmarks in one place.
