The Glitch Bill for Airbus’s Troop Carrier Just Hit $7.35 Billion
- Jet programs set to improve but troop carrier still a headache
- Planemaker predicts mid-single-digit earnings advance in 2017
An Airbus A400M.
Photographer: Jason Alden/BloombergThis article is for subscribers only.
Airbus Group SE booked new charges against the delayed A400M military-transport plane and warned that cost overruns will extend into 2018 at least, overshadowing company forecasts for increased earnings this year.
Europe’s biggest planemaker announced a 2.2 billion-euro ($2.3 billion) hit to cover the cost of the latest glitches to afflict the troubled troop carrier and asked government buyers to help ease the burden going forward. It has now taken 7 billion euros in charges against the A400M over the past decade, following a 2003 deal to build 180 of the turboprop planes for 20 billion euros.