WASHINGTON — Three of Europe’s largest aerospace companies have agreed to combine their space businesses into a new joint venture intended to better compete in the global market.
Airbus, Leonardo and Thales jointly announced Oct. 23 that they had signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to create a joint venture that will merge many of their space activities into a single company.
The unnamed company will include the Space Systems and Space Digital businesses from Airbus Defence and Space; the Space Division of Leonardo, including its shares in Telespazio and Thales Alenia Space; and Thales’ shares in Thales Alenia Space, Telespazio and optics company Thales SESO.
The combination would bring together about 25,000 employees across Europe working on satellites and space services. It wil