Airbus-Leonardo-Thales JV a model EU 'industrial champion,' Von der Leyen says
By Andrew Boyce and Nicholas Hirst ( September 10, 2026, 10:40 GMT | Insight) -- Plans by Airbus, Leonardo and Thales to pool their space activities is “precisely” the kind of scale that Europe’s merger reform is designed to facilitate, according to the European Commission's president. “Our companies are no longer competing primarily at a national or European scale,” Ursula von der Leyen said at a conference in Paris. “These are the types of industrial champions we need if Europe is to lead in the space economy of tomorrow.”Plans by Airbus, Leonardo and Thales to pool their space activities is “precisely” the kind of scale that Europe’s merger reform is designed to facilitate, according to the European Commission's president....
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