Airbus // Universal Registration Document 2023
1. Information on the Company’s Activities
1.1 Presentation of the Company
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Services support legacy aircraft beyond those types currently in production at Airbus Defence and Space, conducting upgrade programmes for aircraft such as the Tornado and NATO’s Airborne Warning and Control System (“ AWACS ”). Airbus Defence and Space provides a broad range of training services for pilots, engineers, maintenance and air crews. Covering the complete pilot training path, from initial training through the Airbus Flight Academy of Europe (“ AFAE ”), to type and conversion training through Airbus Defence and Space’s international training centre and training centres located at customers’ bases, as well as advanced mission training through GFD (Gesellschaft für Flugzieldarstellung GmbH), AvDef (Aviation Défense Service) and Target Systems & Services. Anticipating significant changes foreseen in the training methods, Airbus Defence and Space continues to develop the training of the future, enabled by digital, collective simulation and live virtual constructive technologies. Airbus Defence and Space maintains a network of MRO centres strategically located throughout the world for greater proximity to the customer, for example in Seville, Warsaw or Manching in Europe, in Mobile, Alabama in the US, or at subsidiaries in Saudi Arabia or Canada. Supporting more than 1,600 aircraft worldwide, the contribution of Services continues to grow. Airbus Defence and Space offers UAS services through Airbus DS Airborne Solutions GmbH, supporting FRONTEX (the European Border and Coast Guard Agency) for surveillance operations in the Mediterranean Sea. Satellites, Space Infrastructure, Launch Services The commercial telecommunications satellite market is highly competitive – with customer decisions primarily based on price, technical expertise and track record. The main competitors for telecommunications satellites are Boeing, Lockheed Martin, MAXAR Technologies and Northrop Grumman in the US, Thales Alenia Space in France and Italy, and the China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation. The commercial geostationary (“ GEO ”) telecommunications satellite market continues to show signs of recovery as GEO capable manufacturers can leverage the scale of their capabilities to create very large constellations. Regarding commercial Low Earth Orbit (“ LEO ”) telecommunications constellations, the demand for small satellites remained soft in 2023. The business model remains challenging due to the required high upfront capital expenditure. In the space domain, Airbus has high ambitions to participate in Europe’s LEO constellation, known as Infrastructure for Resilience, Interconnectivity and Security by Satellite (“ IRIS 2 ”) programme, planned to start in 2024. In January 2024, Airbus announced completion of a deal with Eutelsat OneWeb to purchase its 50% share of the Airbus OneWeb Satellites (AOS) joint venture, which built a global high speed internet constellation of satellites for the OneWeb first generation constellation. This endeavour led to a full re-think of satellite design and manufacturing, to facilitate production at competitive costs and on relatively short timelines. The OneWeb constellation was completed in 2023 with 600+ satellites now in orbit and full global service entry due in 2024. Moving forward, OneWeb has clear ambitions to create a second generation constellation. Airbus is now the sole owner of the satellite manufacturing facility in Merritt Island, Florida, supplying ongoing commercial & US government contracts. Space Systems Commercial Sector: Telecommunications
In 2023, Airbus together with Voyager Space announced a pioneering joint venture, Starlab Space, which will develop, build, and operate Starlab, a commercial space station planned to succeed the International Space Station that is due to conclude operations in 2030. With the Bartolomeo Service, Airbus also offers one-stop-shop access to flying payloads in Low-Earth Orbit on the outside of the International Space Station (“ ISS ”), which means easy access to Space for both commercial and institutional customers. The first launch is expected in 2024. The market for commercial launch services continues to evolve with ongoing competitive pressure. Arianespace (a subsidiary of ArianeGroup) provides launch services with the Ariane and Vega launchers. Competitors for launch services include SpaceX, United Launch Alliance, Rocket Lab (for smaller payloads) and various national space agencies. 2023 was a transition year, with limited European launch capacity. We expect to see a turnaround beginning in 2024. As announced in November 2023 by the European Space Agency, the first launch of Ariane 6 is currently targeted between 15 June and 31 July in 2024, subject to final tests. The last Vega is due to launch and return to flight of Vega-C is also expected. The commercial space market also is seeing the rise of large constellations for global connectivity, with the upcoming OneWeb second generation, the launch of prototypes for the Kuiper constellation which is expected to commence service delivery in the second part of this decade, and other new projects emerging both in the US and in Europe. In the public market for Earth Observation (“ EO ”), navigation and science satellites, competition in Europe is organised on a national and multinational level, primarily through the European Space Agency (“ ESA ”), the European Commission and national space agencies. Space Systems remains a major player in the EO segment, involved in the 12 existing and future Copernicus environment missions. The Company was awarded a contract by ESA in 2023 for the development of the TRUTHS mission study for meteorological traceability of Earth observation data. There is also continued export demand for EO systems. While no contracts were signed in 2023, at the end of 2022, Airbus signed a contract with Poland for the provision of two very high resolution S950 Optical satellites and access to Pléiades Neo imagery beginning from 2023. The export market is expected to continue growing over the medium-term driven by the demand from new governmental operators on top of the replacement of existing assets. Airbus Defence and Space is building on its re-established position on the navigation side, as it continues to work on the manufacturing of six Galileo second generation satellites for Europe’s navigation system as well as the EGNOS V3 navigation overlay system, critical for the aircraft industry. The space exploration segment comprises scientific missions for solar system exploration and crewed space systems. Demand for space exploration systems originates solely from publicly funded space agencies, in particular from ESA, NASA, and JAXA (Japan). Such systems are typically built in cooperation with international partners. Governmental Sector: Satellites, Space Infrastructure, Launchers, Deterrence
57 Airbus Annual Report
Universal Registration Document 2023
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