Airbus Group

Nuclear Weapon Producers

Airbus is the prime contractor for ballistic missiles used in the French nuclear arsenal through its participation in ArianeGroup and MBDA.

Nuclear Weapons |  Investments 

Company Profile

Airbus is headquartered in the Netherlands but has its main production facilities in Germany, France and Spain.[i] It is involved in the commercial aircraft, helicopter, defence and space sectors.[ii] The company is partially state-owned by France (10.86%), Germany (10.84%) and Spain (4.09%), with the rest of its shares held by the public.[iii] Airbus is the prime contractor for ballistic missiles used in the French nuclear arsenal through its participation in ArianeGroup and MBDA. ArianeGroup is a joint venture, equally owned by Airbus and French company Safran[iv], and MBDA is a joint venture between BAE Systems (37.5%), Airbus (37.5%) and Leonardo (25%).[v] For the year ending 31 December 2023, Airbus Group generated revenues of € 65.4 billion.[vi]

[i] Airbus in Europe (no date) | AIRBUS. Available at: https://www.airbus.com/en/our-worldwide-presence/airbus-in-europe (Accessed: 18 October 2024).

[ii] Who we are (no date) | Airbus. Available at: Who we are | Airbus (Accessed: 18 October 2024).

[iii] ‘Report of the Board of Directors 2023’, Airbus (2024), p. 11. Available at: v7 Board Report FY 2023 (14 Feb 2024) (airbus.com).

[iv] Governance (no date) | ArianeGroup. Available at: Governance – ArianeGroup (Accessed: 18 October 2024).

[v] About Us (no date) | MBDA Systems. Available at: https://www.mbda-systems.com/about-us/ (Accessed: 18 October 2024.

[vi] ‘Financial Statements 2023’, Airbus (2024), p. 4. Available at: Airbus Financial Statements 2023.

Contact information

Airbus Group SE

PO Box 32008

2303 DA Leiden

The Netherlands

Website: https://www.airbus.com/en

X: @AirbusDefence

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/airbus-defence-and-space

 

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Nuclear weapons

MBDA France, in which Airbus has a 37.5% stake, is the prime contractor for the ASMPA medium-range air-to-ground nuclear armed cruise missile for the French nuclear arsenal.[i] MBDA is also contracted by the French government for work related to development of the ASMPA-successor, the ASN4G.[ii]The new weapon is scheduled to enter service in 2035 with a range exceeding 1,000km, double that of the ASMPA,[iii] and will incorporate new hypersonic technologies.[iv]

Airbus, as part of ArianeGroup, is the main contractor for the M51 submarine-launched ballistic missiles.[v] ArianeGroup states that its role in the M51 production covers “the programme’s entire lifecycle, including upstream studies, development, production and through-life support and maintaining operational readiness, to dismantling the systems when they are decommissioned“.[vi] Through ArianeGroup, Airbus is also contracted for the development of the third version of the ballistic missile, the M51.3, to be completed around 2025.[vii]

[i]  ‘Projet annuel de performances. Budget général. Projets Annuels de Performances. Annexe au Projet de Loi de Finances pour 2025: Programme 146. Équipement des forces’, RÉPUBLIQUE FRANÇAISE (2024), p. 32. Available at: https://www.budget.gouv.fr/documentation/file-download/24758;
ASMPA (no date) | MBDA Missile Systems. Available at: https://www.mbda-systems.com/product/asmpa/ (Accessed : 18 October 2024)

[ii] ‘Projet annuel de performances. Budget général. Projets Annuels de Performances. Annexe au Projet de Loi de Finances pour 2025: Programme 146. Équipement des forces’, RÉPUBLIQUE FRANÇAISE (2024), p. 35. Available at: https://www.budget.gouv.fr/documentation/file-download/24758.

[iii] Hans M. Kristensen, Matt Korda, and Eliana Johns, ‘French Nuclear Weapons, 2023’, Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, 79:4, 272-281, p. 276. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/00963402.2023.2223088;
‘​France kicks off development of wingman drone for Rafale fighter jet’, DefenseNews, 9 October 2024. Available at: France kicks off development of wingman drone for Rafale fighter jet (defensenews.com).

[iv] Hans M. Kristensen, Matt Korda, and Eliana Johns, ‘French Nuclear Weapons, 2023’, Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, 79:4, 272-281, p. 276. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/00963402.2023.2223088;

‘RAPPORT D’INFORMATION DÉPOSÉ en application de l’article 145 du Règlement PAR LA COMISION DE LA DÉFENSE NATIONALE ET DES FORCES ARMÉES portant recueil d’auditions de la commission sur la dissuasion nucléaire’, ASSEMBLÉE NATIONALE (2023). Available at: Rapport d'information n°1112 - 16e législature - Assemblée nationale (assemblee-nationale.fr).

[v] ‘Projet annuel de performances. Budget général. Projets Annuels de Performances. Annexe au Projet de Loi de Finances pour 2025: Programme 146. Équipement des forces’, RÉPUBLIQUE FRANÇAISE (2024), p. 28. Available at: https://www.budget.gouv.fr/documentation/file-download/24758.

[vi] M51 (no date) | ArianeGroup. Available at: https://www.ariane.group/en/defense/m51/ (Accessed: 18 October 2024).

[vii] Heritage (no date) | ArianeGroup. Available at: Our History - ArianeGroup (Accessed: 18 October 2024);
Hans M. Kristensen, Matt Korda, and Eliana Johns, ‘French Nuclear Weapons, 2023’, Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, 79:4, 272-281, p. 275. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/00963402.2023.2223088;

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Last updated: 2025-02-27 14:32:58

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