Andrew Doyle/TOULOUSE
The seven countries evaluating the Airbus Military (AMC) A400M for their airlifter requirements have agreed to buy the aircraft through the OCCAR (Organisme Conjointe de Co-operation en matiere d'Armament) international armaments agency. The procurement agency is being set up by potential buyers France, Germany, Italy and the UK.
The deal was reached after Spain dropped its objections to the idea following DaimlerChrysler Aerospace's agreed acquisition of CASA. Belgium has requested membership of OCCAR, while Turkey wants observer status.
The deal means that, if the A400Mis launched next year as planned, OCCAR will negotiate a joint contract covering up to 288 aircraft that the seven nations expect to procure.
The OCCAR convention, agreed at the Farnborough air show in September last year, has been ratified by the UK Parliament. Approvals are expected from France, Germany and Italy by the end of the year. This would clear the way for the organisation to be legally established as early as mid-January.
OCCAR has been earmarked to handle contracts for collaborative programmes, including the Franco-German Eurocopter Tiger attack helicopter and Aster family of surface-to-air missiles being developed by France and Italy. OCCAR will be based in Bonn, with separate programme offices initially in Germany and France.
AMC officials have welcomed the move to hand OCCAR responsibility for the A400M contracts as it will avoid the need for separate negotiations between the manufacturer and each of the customer nations. "There is a working assumption that the programme would benefit commercially from being procured through OCCAR," says an industry source.
Meanwhile, the A400M programme remains on track for a formal launch decision in the second half of next year, according to AMC commercial director Richard Thompson. The most significant hurdle to overcome, however, remains Germany's enthusiasm for a Westernised version of the Antonov An-70 as an alternative to the AMC proposal.
"I don't believe that any one country could kill the A400M, but I believe that two countries possibly could, depending on who they were," says Thompson.
AMC has provided the seven nations with proposals based on an estimated $80 million unit price, backed by guarantees on aircraft performance and delivery dates. The recovery of non-recurring development costs will be factored into the aircraft price.
Source: Flight International
