Airbus Unveils Military Transport Plane

The public got a sneak peak at the much-delayed A400M at an elaborate ceremony in Spain. More than 190 orders are already on the books

At an elaborate unveiling ceremony in Spain Thursday, Airbus held a public viewing of the A400M, its multi-purpose military transport plane that it hopes will replace the aging workhorses of many militaries across the world.

At the same time, however, the company announced the airplane still faces six-to-12 month delays in deliveries caused by problems encountered in engine production. The first test flight is tentatively scheduled for September or October.

The company currently has 192 orders for the plane on the books—each of which costs €100 million ($156.6 million)—to seven European countries in addition to South Africa and Malaysia.

The plane is meant to replace the aging fleets of C-130 Hercules cargo aircrafts produced by Lockheed Martin Corp. as well as the C-160 that was developed by a French and German corporation. With twice the capacity and payload of the planes it will replace, the A400M will fulfill numerous roles from aerial refueling to dropping supplies during humanitarian relief operations.

"Our transport fleet is becoming obsolete," Major Fabrice Balayn from the French Air Force's logistics division told Reuters. "We need to increase our transport capacity in order to meet the requirements of the new missions all over the world."

France is scheduled to take delivery of the first four-engine plane in 2010, a year behind schedule, followed by Germany a year later. The company has been troubled by similar delays in delivering its A380 superjumbo and the NH90 military helicopter.

Airbus' parent company EADS has also had more recent causes for worry. Late last week, a US congressional watchdog ruled that "significant errors" had been made in the bidding process for 179 aerial refueling tankers that EADS had won in March with Northrop Grumman. The US Air Force now has 60 days to respond to the complaints, which might reopen the $35-billion competition.

The A400M has been developed since 2003 at a cost of €20 billion ($31 billion), which represents Europe's largest military procurement program ever. EADS CEO Louis Gallois told the 2,700 people gathered for the ceremony that the project has represented "a big moment for European integration."

The lavish unveiling ceremony was held in Seville, where the final assembly plant is located. It had more flair than the typical Airbus ceremony, with blaring techno music, a flamenco show, aerial gymnasts, a light display, and Spain's King Juan Carlos sitting in the plane's cockpit.

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