Case 373 - One for All and All for Themselves: Lessons in Military Procurement from the A400M Transport Plane

Robert Letovsky

The case focuses on the 40+ year saga of the A400M, a revolutionary new military airlift plane produced by the European manufacturer Airbus Industrie. The case looks at the goals pursued by the various European governments involved in the project and how various decisions taken by the respective governments and Airbus impacted the airplane’s development, production, and deployment.

Ultimately, the aircraft has been put into service with the militaries of the original purchasing countries, albeit with ongoing issues surrounding its performance, price, and delivery timing. The case thus offers students the opportunity to look at issues surrounding the kinds of goals governments can (or should) pursue when making major military acquisitions, as well as a chance to benchmark the A400M project against what are considered best practices in these kinds of purchases.