Airbus Ordered To Pay EURO 140M To Settle Taiwanese Missile Dispute

European aerospace giant Airbus issued a statement on January 13 that it has been ordered to pay a fine of €104 million regarding missiles sale to Taiwan in 1992.

The company said that it acknowledges notification of an arbitral award on 12 January 2018 concerning a breach of contract claim related to a purchase agreement signed in 1992 for the supply of missiles for which the products were delivered in the years shortly thereafter. 

Matra Defence was accused of jacking up the prices and remitting commissions to an intermediary who was not authorized by Taiwan at that time, according to Radio France Internationale.

Airbus said in a statement that its subsidiary behind the missile contract, Matra Defense, was “reviewing the award before evaluating the next steps to take”.

According to Taipei Times, Taiwan’s government had ordered air-to-air and short-range missiles that the military bought for the French-made Dassault Mirage 2000 fighter jets for which it had signed a separate deal in November 1992. The missiles in question were the MBDA MICA medium-range and R.550 Magic short-range missiles.

Dassault Aviation and two other French aerospace companies on Oct. 25 last year announced that they had been fined by Taiwan’s government combined 227 million euros to settle disputes linked the sale of 60 Mirage fighters to the island.