Airbus is aiming to have a revised contract for the A400M signed off by mid-year, as negotiations with the programme's launch nations continue.

Speaking on a first-quarter results call on 30 April, chief executive Guillaume Faury said that talks were "progressing".

German A400M - Airbus Defence & Space

Airbus Defence & Space

"It is a negotiation to come to the final agreement with different countries. We are moving ahead, moving forward to come to an agreement which is targeted by mid-year."

Airbus has been promising to finalise the revised contract for the past 12 months, with the deadline repeatedly missed.

That deal – with Belgium, France, Germany, Luxembourg, Spain, Turkey and the UK via Europe's OCCAR defence procurement agency – includes revised aircraft delivery and retrofit schedules and an updated technical capability roadmap.

Airbus handed over one example of the tactical transport in the first quarter, with an additional two aircraft delivered in April, says Faury.

Cirium's Fleets Analyzer records deliveries to France and Germany in the first four months of the year.

Retrofit activities are "advancing in line with the customer agreement plan", he says.

Source: FlightGlobal.com