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In a ceremony in Warsaw this week, Embraer CEO Francisco Gomes Neto announced that the Brazilian plane maker planned to make Poland a “center of excellence” as part of its European industrial strategy at a time when the country’s flag carrier and armed forces are actively considering its commercial and defense aircraft.
The industrial offer alongside a potential direct sale of Embraer’s single-aisle E2 family to LOT Polish Airlines and a proposal for the C-390 airlifter to the Polish Air Force comes amid a massive strategic pivot by Europe on defense spending as the Trump Administration upends U.S. policy around Ukraine, prompting European governments to openly question the future viability of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO).
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That has forced European governments to rethink budgetary allocations in the face of a perceived waning U.S. commitment to shared security. Germany’s incoming chancellor Friedrich Merz, for example, reached a deal Friday to overhaul borrowing rules to pay for the increased expenditures. The continent’s new posture helped enable record highs for Airbus’s defense business backlog, which rose to €16.7 billion at the end of 2024.
The competition between Embraer and Airbus, which is offering the A220 for LOT, goes far deeper than a head-to-head competition for aircraft supply, with Poland being drawn into the industrial orbit of both plane makers as a component of each broad agreement. While not directly connected, the twin campaigns are strategically interrelated as Poland charts its future geopolitical alignment. The expansive offer from Embraer coincides with Poland seeking a stake in the European aerospace giant, according to Le Monde. Airbus today employs 800 people at four sites in Poland and a visit by Airbus CEO Guillaume Faury is reportedly expected soon as well.
“That’s the game that Airbus plays really well and Embraer historically lags, but they’ve stepped up their game,” said a senior industry leader familiar with the campaign. “Embraer has been super aggressive. The political part is huge.”
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