Dassault Aviation has confirmed a dispute with Airbus over the Eurodrone program, adding fresh uncertainty to one of Europe’s flagship defense projects.
Dassault CEO Eric Trappier said Airbus had attempted to remove the French aircraft manufacturer from the multinational Eurodrone program, according to a report by Reuters.
“For us it is very simple. Airbus told us to get out,” Trappier said before a French Senate committee, adding that discussions are ongoing over what he described as Dassault’s exclusion from the project.
Airbus declined to comment on Trappier’s remarks.
The disagreement follows a Reuters report in June that Dassault was seeking compensation from Airbus over changes to the program. The dispute reportedly stems from a reduced share of work for Dassault after France decided to scale back plans to procure the medium-altitude, long-endurance drone.
Eurodrone Program
Eurodrone is being jointly developed by France, Germany, Italy, and Spain as Europe’s answer to the US-made MQ-9 Reaper.
Airbus serves as the program’s prime contractor, while Dassault Aviation and Italy’s Leonardo are major industrial partners.
The planned aircraft will feature advanced sensor suites, a payload capacity of up to 2.3 tonnes (5,070 pounds), and an endurance of approximately 40 hours.
In October 2025, Airbus completed the critical design review for the Eurodrone, a key milestone confirming that the aircraft’s design is mature enough to move toward prototype production. The review covered the aircraft, ground control systems, and mission equipment.
