Risk Assessment To Prep For Introduction Of Future Aircraft

Airbus Defense and Space will be the prime contractor, in partnership with Thales, to conduct a risk assessment study of the future maritime patrol aircraft program for the French Defense Procurement Agency, under the terms of the contract announced on February 4, 2025.

The 24-month contract is a follow-on from the feasibility and architecture study initiated at the end of 2022.

The goal of the new definition study and risk assessment is to prepare for the development and start of production of the aircraft to be used in maritime patrol by the end of 2026. The study will  extend the results of the architecture study to be applied in the refinement of the economic and industrial conditions for executing the program and guiding the technical selections of the systems that will be integrated on the aircraft and to begin wind tunnel tests.

The A321 MPA is the military variant of the A321XLR designed for the operational requirements of the French Navy in anti-submarine and ant-ship warfare from low to high intensity and for intelligence gathering. The objective is to secure a replacement for the French Navy’s Atlantique 2 fleet at the Lann-Bihoue naval air base in France in the timeframe of 2030-40.

Jean-Brice Dumont, Executive Vice President and Head of Air Power at Airbus Defense and Space said, “The A321 MPA (Maritime Patrol Aircraft) has all the assets to become a true flying frigate capable of responding to the wide range of missions entrusted to the French maritime patrol. Airbus offers a sovereign solution that provides the autonomy, availability and reliability required to contribute to the oceanic component of the nuclear deterrence.”

FMI:  www.airbus.com/