Airbus to sue over US and German spying row

German media reports have suggested that the country’s BND spy agency collected data on European firms at the behest of the US National Security Agency

The NSA in Fort Meade, Maryland. (Getty Images)

The European defence and aviation group Airbus is preparing to file a criminal complaint over allegations that the German intelligence service helped the US carry out industrial espionage.

It comes after German media reports suggested that the country’s BND spy agency collected data on European firms at the behest of the US National Security Agency. The NSA is also alleged to have spied on senior French and EU officials in a scandal that has rocked German politics. The country’s Interior Minister, Thomas de Maizière, a close ally of Chancellor Angela Merkel, has come under attack from opposition parties over his record as chief of staff in 2005-9. He has denied knowing whether the BND helped US agencies.

“We have asked the government for more information,” said a spokesman for Airbus. “We will launch a complaint against an unknown person on suspicion of industrial espionage.”

The news came as the pan-European aeroplane maker said its profits rose in the first quarter of the year, despite the number of aircraft orders it received dipping from 103 last year to 101.

The sale of its 17.5 per cent stake in Dassault Aviation boosted profits to €792m (£575m) from €439m in 2014. Airbus is planning to increase production of its new long-range, twin-engined, wide-body A350 jet airliners.

The chief executive Tom Enders, who is an adviser to David Cameron, said: “We had a good start into 2015, with a solid operational performance and improved cash generation, further supported by asset sales.”