Airbus on “severe disruption/ unrecoverable delays/ billions in lost turnover” sign of disbelief of exasperated businesses on direction of travel on Brexit, finally going public, not with threats, but with logical consequences of political choices:
airbus.com/content/dam/ch…
airbus.com/content/dam/ch…
The document is a “Risk Assessment” of the company that up until now makes up to 40% by value of its planes in the UK (if you include engines). Just in time delivery, no rules of origin in Customs Union, EASA Single Market safety checks - Airbus in UK built on this system 1/10 
10,000 original Airbus aircraft parts originate in UK under EU rules - “All UK companies will need to transfer design approvals, product approvals and maintenance approvals into the EU” if theres No Deal ans so Airbus says it’s “increasingly concerned” about lack of progress 2/10
Important point on industrial reality - Government trying to bank relative stability of Transition Agreement when it talks to business, but at the same time still create negotiating space for No Deal which would mean No transition deal - businesses that matter arent stupid: 3/10
They’ve costed the impact of having to hold higher stocks of parts, tying up capital, penalty payments, delays at a time when Airbus currently running at full capacity: billions 4/10
.. No Deal would “force Airbus to reconsider its footprint/ investments in and dependence on the UK.. consequences such as repatriating competencies, patents, revisiting R&D” and “Wing of Tomorrow” investment in Bristol revisited... instead “grown outside UK” 5/10
Even with deal “significant amount of risk” could lead to 1-2 weeks delays due to late deal making and lack of time. “Proposed transition phase too short for governments to agree all important open points and Airbus and suppliers to agree/ implement change in supply chain” 6/10
15bn of cross channel trade within Airbus supply chains - thats wings and undercarriages
(€10B UK-EU; €5B EU-UK) operating just in time - Airbus should “refrain from extending its UK suppliers/ partner base” until it is able to understand new EU/UK relationship 7/10
(€10B UK-EU; €5B EU-UK) operating just in time - Airbus should “refrain from extending its UK suppliers/ partner base” until it is able to understand new EU/UK relationship 7/10
“Customs Union” - ie not partnership, agreement, arrangement, area, maximally facilitated - a customs union [and harmonised regulatory framework (ie EASA etc)] ‘are the two major issues that will determine strategy and need to be addressed “urgently” 8/10
Not even about tariffs “non tariff costs” [airworthiness and new trade procedures, difficulties in moving people] could lead to recurring extra costs of 1bn euros a year on Airbus UK, it says: 9/10
responses here “EU state owned company punishing Brexit” - it is 11% French, 11% German, 4% Spanish, 74% is floated - but perhaps yes - this is a gift to any EU leader eg Macron needing to repatriate high value manufacturing from outside single Market/ CU. Applies elsewhere too.
Interesting: First official political response from Conservatives from leader in Wales attacks “threats by Airbus to relocate its operations to China” accuses Airbus of wanting to ”slash costs and standards”
Interesting to see if Number 10 back attacking Airbus as the response to deal with Airbus explaining the consequences it has established of what it can establish is Government policy on Brexit
And here are some interesting ideas on how to deal with the issues thrown up by Airbus - basically goods single market
