Ian Verchere
The president of DaimlerChrysler Aerospace (Dasa) says his takeover of the Spanish aerospace group Construcciones Aeronauticas (Casa) will strengthen Germany's hand in forcing a transformation of Airbus Industrie into a single corporate entity.
Gustav Humbert, commenting on threats by German aviation minister Siegmar Mosdorf to withhold state funding for development of the A3XX very large airliner until this longstanding battle has been won, agrees "the single corporate entity (SCE) will be a vital factor in making any assessment on funding the A3XX by the German government."
But he stresses he would not "cut somebody's throat or be hostile against other partners."
However, it could be helpful in "overcoming a certain reluctance in some quarters" to advancing this process.
"Quite apart from shareholdings, the psychological and structural impact of this Dasa-Casa deal will help, I'm sure," says Humbert.
He endorses UK trade minister John Battle's view that "the message from the Airbus ministerial meeting held at Paris air show is that we would urge the companies to lift the barriers out of the way to becoming an SCE."
In short, says Humbert, "no SCE, no A3XX money."
He says he did not detect any decline in support for the German aerospace industry from the new Schroeder government. "There has been a broad consensus among all German political parties that the aerospace industry has to be supported politically and with the right money at the right time. So far, I don't see any shift in this policy."
But there are always inherent dangers of such actions when cost-cutting budgets are being planned. Support for the aerospace sector in the USA is seven times that in Germany, he warns, and also appreciably higher in the UK and France.
"So it is important that the support of the German government is of the same quality and quantity as in these countries and that we have a level playing field," he says.
Source: Flight Daily News
