EADS, the parent company of planemaker Airbus, has picked European buyers for six plants it is selling and rejected proposals from US aerospace firm Spirit AeroSystems. Airbus insisted that politics had nothing to do with the decision and that the three European firms had come up with better offers commercially and technically.
EADS is talking with British engineering and cars parts group GKN for a full sale of the Filton plant in south west England where wings and sub-assemblies are made. For the two factories in France EADS would form joint ventures with French firm Latecoere and there would be partnerships with Germany's MT Aerospace for the two plants there.
The factories concerned employ a total of 9,400 workers and the various unions have held demonstrations fearing job cuts. The sales are to reduce costs because of losses from delays to the A380 superjumbo.
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