Thousands of Airbus jobs at risk over MoD contract
Airbus has privately told the Ministry of Defence that a failure to secure a contract to build the next generation of Skynet 6 satellites could threaten £10bn worth of potential exports.
The company is currently trying to secure work from the Japanese government and various Middle Eastern countries.
However, this business relies on Airbus's status as a trusted British partner and executives fear that a snub from London would sink the deals.
That would in turn cause serious problems for the company's UK space division, multiple people briefed on the situation said.
Without the extra work, the future of the company's flagship satellite facilities in Stevenage and Portsmouth – which employ a combined 3,000 people – would be put at risk.
They are seen as the jewels in crown of the UK space industry, with Sir Keir Starmer taking German chancellor Friedrich Merz on a tour of the Stevenage site during a visit on Thursday.
But at present, the UK division only has enough work to sustain it until the end of this decade.
Ben Bridges, chairman of Airbus Defence and Space UK, has also previously warned that Britain's sovereign ability to design and make satellites is critical to its status as a global 'space power'.
On Friday, a spokesman for Airbus declined to comment.
The MoD is expected to put the latest Skynet contract out to tender as soon as next week, with Airbus and US defence giant Lockheed Martin the only two companies in the running. Airbus has built all of Britain's Skynet satellites to date.
The bus-sized devices orbit the Earth from more than 22,000 miles away and provide vital, secure communications used to keep troops connected with bases back in Britain, coordinate missile strikes or transmit targeting data.
Airbus is facing a challenge from Lockheed, which has offered to set up a UK satellite manufacturing base. Ministry of Defence insiders say the American giant is also offering advanced capabilities that are not available from Airbus satellites.
The decision is gaining urgency as Airbus lobbies for clarity on its future workload.
Made in America?
At the same time, a debate is raging across Europe over how much to invest in US-made military equipment in future amid concerns about Donald Trump's commitment to the Continent.
President Trump has called on Europe to step up and pay for its own security, a push that led to Nato members recently agreeing to increase defence spending to 5pc of GDP by 2035.
On Friday, James Cartlidge, Conservative shadow defence secretary, warned that preserving Britain's ability to design and make satellites was essential because of the growing role space was playing in conflicts.
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