Demands more orders

Taurus missiles are no longer being produced

A Taurus cruise missile

(Bild: APA/AFP/Sebastian PIEKNIK)

Taurus missiles are no longer being produced due to a lack of orders. The manufacturer MBDA is now warning of shortages of raw materials. The head of the German subsidiary, Thomas Gottschild, said in an interview with the "Augsburger Allgemeine" newspaper that quicker decisions by the federal government are necessary.

Armaments, for example, could be procured even faster than at present. "It is a challenge for our industry when production is interrupted, as with the Taurus. This is because our suppliers, which are often small and medium-sized companies, have stopped production in such cases," said manager Gottschild. When new orders come in again, the suppliers first have to position themselves and secure raw materials, for example.

It is a challenge for our industry when production is interrupted, as is the case with the Taurus. This is because our suppliers, which are often small and medium-sized companies, have stopped production in such cases.

Thomas Gottschild, MBDA-Chef 

High global demand
As the demand for basic materials for explosives is high worldwide, there are currently bottlenecks. "It is enough to make it worthwhile to maintain supply chains, keep test equipment up to date and maintain the skills of the workforce." There are certainly skilled workers in Germany, said Gottschild. Last year, around 400 people a month applied to the armaments company. At the beginning of this year, there were already 800 applications per month. The company currently has around 1,200 employees in Germany. Other locations are in France, Great Britain, Italy and Spain.

A Taurus cruise missile on display

(Bild: APA/AFP/Sebastian PIEKNIK)

In action

(Bild: AFP)

"Important building block for Ukraine"
Whether Germany supplies Taurus cruise missiles to Ukraine is a political decision. Currently, the Ukrainian army would cover the stand-off capability with other weapons. "From the Ukrainians' point of view, however, the Taurus would be (...) an important supplementary component." This is a German-Swedish air-to-surface cruise missile that was developed for various payloads and missions. It has a flight range of more than 500 kilometers.

So far, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz has rejected Taurus deliveries to Ukraine. He argues that this could drag Germany into the war. This has already been voted on several times in the Bundestag.