France will provide 15 billion Euros (16.9 billion dollars) worth of aid to help its aerospace industry survive the coronavirus crisis, Economy Minister Bruno Le Maire said on Tuesday.
“The crisis had brought the industry to an abrupt halt after years of growing air traffic, with orders for new planes down 80 to 90 per cent,’’ Le Maire said.
He told a news conference in Paris that Air traffic was unlikely to return to pre-crisis levels for two or three years, adding that the sector’s recovery would be at best gradual, but more likely very slow.
Measures announced include a 12-month moratorium on export credit repayments, which Le Maire said would represent a 1.5-billion-euro cash flow gain for the companies concerned.
“The aid should help European aircraft manufacturer Airbus as well as major aerospace and defence firms Dassault, Safran and Thales preserve jobs in France.
“There will be necessary adjustments, but it must be done, as far as possible, without involuntary departures,’’ the minister said.
France had spent “decades” building up skills in the sector, with 300,000 jobs involved including no fewer than 35,000 engineers.
Le Maire promised long-term state support for temporary lay-offs and short-time working to avoid losses of jobs and skills.
He pledged 1 billion Euros for the transformation of small businesses that play a key role in aerospace supply chains.
Another 1.5 billion Euros will go to fund research on carbon-neutral aviation, with the aim of producing a carbon-neutral plane by 2035, 15 years ahead of a previous target date.
