Imperfect EU Still Needs National Industry Lobbies

The future of purely national aerospace industry organizations, such as GIFAS of France and Britain's SBAC, in an ostensibly unifying single-market Europe, was called into question during a briefing yesterday by GIFAS (and Snecma) president Jean-Paul Bechat.

Since so many aerospace products were the result of international collaborative ventures, should not the industry's promotional organizations also be multi-national?, a questioner asked.

Bechat gave the question a terse reply. Europe already had a common aerospace promotional organization in AICMA, he said, but as long as it was not politically and economically unified we needed national organizations.

A very similar response to the question came later from SBAC vice-president Ken Maciver, of Lucas Aerospace. The British industry would continue to need a purely national body to represent its interests to the British Government, he said.

By Bob Rodwell