ArianeGroup studying ballistic-missile production in Germany: Les Echos

PARIS — ArianeGroup, the French maker of the Ariane 6 space launcher and the M51 submarine-launched ballistic missile, is studying the possibility of manufacturing ballistic missiles in Germany, the company’s chief executive officer, Christophe Bruneau, told Les Echos.

Bruneau continues to believe in French-German cooperation “more than ever,” despite setbacks around programs for a future fighter aircraft and future main battle tank, he said in a joint interview with the French daily and Germany’s Handelsblatt published Thursday.

In areas of mutual interest to the French and the Germans, ArianeGroup “as a French-Germany company can bring joint solutions, particularly in defense,” according to Bruneau, who became CEO of the company at the start of April, after previously heading Safran’s military engines business. ArianeGroup is jointly owned by Airbus and Safran.

“Everyone in Europe is convinced that we need options for conventional ballistic missile for deep strike given the expansion of conflicts,” Bruneau said.

France has budgeted €1 billion (US$1.2 billion) to start work on a land-based ballistic missile with a range of 2,500 kilometers, as part of an update of its defense spending plan. The published goal to have the capability in 2035, though the country’s Directorate General for Armament plans to accelerate the work to allow for a date closer to 2030.

The country in October introduced a modernized version of the M51 strategic ballistic missile that equips the submarines in France’s ocean-based nuclear deterrent, with ArianeGroup in charge of missile design and propulsion.

ArianeGroup is ready to respond to the requirements of political and military authorities, and has started discussions with Germany and France, the CEO told Les Echos. Bruneau said one of his goals is to strengthen German development in the company, though Germany taking a stake in ArianeGroup “is not on the table.”

The company has launch availability on Ariane 6 from 2028, and plans to increase the number of launches to between seven and eight this year before increasing to 10 a year, with each launch able to bring more than 30 satellites into Low-Earth Orbit, according to Bruneau.

The CEO said the value of Ariane 6 is to provide Europe independent access to space, including for military satellites.

Rudy Ruitenberg is a Europe correspondent for Defense News. He started his career at Bloomberg News and has experience reporting on technology, commodity markets and politics.

巴黎——法国阿丽亚娜集团（ArianeGroup）首席执行官克里斯托夫·布鲁诺（Christophe Bruneau）告诉《回声报》，该公司正在研究在德国生产弹道导弹的可能性。阿丽亚娜集团是阿丽亚娜6号运载火箭和M51潜射弹道导弹的制造商。

尽管在未来战斗机和未来主战坦克项目上遭遇挫折，布鲁诺仍然“比以往任何时候都更加”相信法德合作。他在周四发表于法国日报和德国《商报》联合采访中表示。

据布鲁诺称，在法德两国共同感兴趣的领域，阿丽亚娜集团“作为一家法德合资企业，能够提供联合解决方案，尤其是在国防领域”。布鲁诺于4月初出任该公司首席执行官，此前他曾领导赛峰集团的军用发动机业务。阿丽亚娜集团由空客和赛峰集团共同拥有。

布鲁诺说：“鉴于冲突的扩大，欧洲所有人都确信我们需要常规弹道导弹进行纵深打击的选项。”

法国已拨款10亿欧元（约合12亿美元）用于研发射程2500公里的陆基弹道导弹，这是其国防开支计划更新的一部分。官方公布的目标是在2035年实现该导弹的研制能力，但法国军备总局计划加快研发进度，争取在2030年左右实现。

10 月，法国推出了 M51 战略弹道导弹的现代化版本，该导弹装备了法国海洋核威慑力量中的潜艇，导弹的设计和推进由阿丽亚娜集团负责。

阿丽亚娜集团首席执行官布鲁诺告诉《回声报》，公司已准备好响应政治和军事当局的要求，并已开始与德国和法国进行磋商。布鲁诺表示，他的目标之一是加强德国在公司的发展，但德国入股阿丽亚娜集团“不在考虑范围内”。

据布鲁诺称，该公司从 2028 年起可以使用阿里安 6 号火箭进行发射，并计划今年将发射次数增加到 7 到 8 次，然后再增加到每年 10 次，每次发射可以将 30 多颗卫星送入近地轨道。

首席执行官表示，阿里安6号的价值在于为欧洲提供独立进入太空的途径，包括军事卫星的发射。

鲁迪·鲁伊滕贝格是《防务新闻》的欧洲记者。他的职业生涯始于彭博新闻社，拥有报道科技、大宗商品市场和政治方面的经验。