Airbus Defence and Space announced last week that it would be cutting up to 2,500 jobs. This is the company’s response to the difficult economic situation, particularly in the space segment. Concrete measures include a reorganisation of the space segment.
Airbus wants to focus on central functions. In addition, the company plans to establish full operational end-to-end responsibility for the Air Power, Space Systems and Connected Intelligence divisions. According to Airbus estimates, these measures will be accompanied by job cuts of up to 2,500 positions.
The restructuring period has been set until mid-2026. To mitigate social hardship for affected employees, Airbus is entering into dialogue with the social partners. The company intends to deliver concrete proposals to alleviate social hardship shortly.
‘In recent years, the defence and aerospace sector, and therefore also our business area, has been affected by a very challenging business environment.It is characterised by disrupted supply chains, rapid changes in warfare and increasing cost pressure due to budget restrictions.While the transformation efforts initiated in 2023 are starting to bear fruit, particularly in terms of operational performance and risk management, we are now taking the next steps, not least to adapt to an increasingly difficult space market.We want to organise the division in such a way that it can act as a leading and competitive player in this constantly evolving market.To do this, we need to become faster, leaner and more competitive,’ said Mike Schoellhorn, CEO of Airbus Defence and Space.