Airbus hopes for cooperation within SAFE with EU countries, with strong focus on Poland
By proposing projects eligible for EU defence instrument SAFE, such as the A400M transport aircraft and the A330 MRTT tanker aircraft, French aerospace giant Airbus is encouraging European countries to work together, Jean-Brice Dumont of Airbus Defence and Space told PAP. He emphasised that Poland is a key country in the context of the EU programme.
In June this year, Airbus won a tender to supply aircraft to Poland's flag airline LOT Polish Airlines (PLL LOT). The order covers the delivery of 40 A220 aircraft in two versions: -100 and -300 between 2027 and 2031, with an option to purchase a further 44 aircraft. The total value of the transaction – the order plus the option – is approximately USD 9 billion at list prices. This is the largest investment in the history of the Polish national carrier.
As Jean-Brice Dumont, head of Airbus Defence and Space division responsible for military aviation, emphasised in an interview with PAP, the agreement with LOT was a great achievement – one of many that Airbus would like to accomplish in Poland. This also applies to the field of security.
An opportunity for this may be the EU's SAFE rearmament programme, based on preferential loans, worth EUR 150 billion, of which Poland has been allocated the largest share – EUR 43.7 billion. Loans under this programme, granted to EU countries and taken out by the European Commission, will be guaranteed by the EU budget, and the funds obtained can be used for both military equipment and ammunition.
"By proposing projects eligible for SAFE, we are encouraging European countries to work together," said Dumont, pointing out that Poland is one of the key countries in the context of the programme.
The Airbus Group has been present in Poland since 2001, when the PZL Warszawa-Okecie aircraft factory became the property of Airbus Defence and Space. The company employs nearly 1,000 people in Poland at its plants in Warsaw (PZL Okecie), Mielec (training centre), Lodz (Airbus Helicopters design office) and Strykow near Lodz (Airbus Helicopters test centre).
Its activities in Poland include the production of aircraft structures for the C295 and A330 aircraft and electrical harnesses for the C295, A320 and A330. In 2022, Navblue, a company belonging to the Airbus group specialising in the production of databases and software that facilitate flight operations and air traffic management, began operations in Gdansk.
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