Airbus announced a reduction of over 2,000 jobs in its Defense and Space division, representing roughly 5% of its workforce. This news comes after the European aerospace giant faced heavy losses in the satellite sector, particularly due to competition from the United States. While the cuts are significant, they are less severe than initially anticipated. Airbus had previously warned of reductions reaching up to 2,500 jobs, or 7% of the division.
Focus on Space Systems and Management
More than half of the job reductions will come from the Space Systems business, which has been hit hard by losses on satellite projects. A total of 1,128 positions will be eliminated from this sector. Notably, Airbus emphasizes there will be no compulsory redundancies.
The company aims to streamline operations and reduce fixed costs by targeting primarily white-collar and management roles. The cuts will be spread across Europe, with Germany seeing the largest impact (689 positions), followed by France (540), and the UK (477).
Competition in Low Earth Orbit
Airbus is struggling to keep pace with the rise of low Earth orbit (LEO) satellite constellations, particularly Elon Musk’s Starlink project. Traditionally, European satellite makers have focused on complex, high-orbit spacecraft.
These job cuts are separate from a previously reported initiative (“Project Bromo”) to create a unified European satellite champion by combining resources from Airbus, Thales, and Leonardo. This broader effort signifies a multi-pronged approach to strengthen Europe’s position in the face of growing global competition.
The workforce reduction is part of a larger restructuring plan called “Proton” and is expected to be completed by mid-2026. Governments of the four core nations that house Airbus operations (France, Germany, Spain, and the UK) have been briefed on the plan. Union officials have yet to comment on the announcement.
