(AOF) – On the occasion of the international Eurosatory exhibition, Figeac Aéro announces the signing of a new agreement with KNDS, the Franco-German land defense specialist, for a total value of several tens of millions of euros. The new agreement is an amendment to a contract signed in 2020, relating to the machining, surface treatment and assembly of a set of elementary parts intended for armored vehicle programs in France and for export.
This amendment aims to strengthen the long-term partnership between Figeac Aéro and KNDS, and to locate particularly strategic defense production in France. As part of this contract, Figeac Aéro has set up a dedicated workshop within its subsidiary specializing in defense activities, Mécabrive Industries.
Extending the agreement over a period of several years, the amendment also formalizes a sharp increase in production volumes, initiated from the 2023/24 financial year, as well as an update of the terms of the contract.
The KNDS group was born in 2015 from the merger between the German KMW and the French Nexter, forming the European leader in land defense. With more than 9,500 employees, a turnover of more than 3.3 billion euros and an order book of 16 billion euros, the KNDS portfolio includes a wide range of products and services (tanks combat, armored vehicles, artillery systems, equipment and ammunition…).
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The end of a duopoly?
For several decades, the American Boeing and the European Airbus have shared 99% of the world market for airliners with more than 110 seats. This market is worth more than 100 billion dollars per year. However, this duopoly appears weakened in 2022 for several reasons. First, for the first time, two medium-haul single-aisle aircraft, the C919 from China’s Comac and the MC-21 from Russia’s Irkut, are preparing to enter service. Added to this is the Boeing 737 MAX crisis. With the cessation of deliveries of this aircraft between 2019 and 2021, the production balance has been disrupted. In 2021 Boeing posted 340 deliveries, with Airbus remaining well in the lead, with 611.