A logo sits on display outside the Airbus wing assembly factory in Broughton, U.K.Airbus announced plans on Wednesday to cut up to 2,500 jobs in its Defence and Space division, citing a "complex business environment" especially in loss-making satellites.
It has been hit by 1.5 billion euros ($1.63 billion) of charges in space systems in recent quarters, led by the high-tech OneSat project, and delays and rising costs in defense.
The job cuts, first reported by French news agency AFP, come on top of a more than year-long efficiency review in the defense and space business, code-named ATOM.
Airbus has been drawing up specific turnaround plans for its struggling Space Systems business without waiting for the outcome of recent satellite consolidation talks that include Italy's Leonardo as well as France's Thales.
Group CEO Guillaume Faury said earlier this year that Airbus was looking at opportunities to create scale in defense, space and particularly satellites where traditional players have been heavily disrupted by the success of new constellations.
Persons:
Mike Schoellhorn, Italy's Leonardo, Guillaume Faury
Organizations:
Airbus, Defence, Space, AFP, Space Systems, Thales, Reuters
Locations:
Broughton, U.K, Germany, France, Britain, Spain, Ukraine, U.S