The European project to build a new all-terrain military aircraft, the Airbus A400M, is three to five years behind schedule. That delay is confirmed by EADS Chief Executive Officer Louis Gallois in this issue of Europolitics. The loss for the company already adds up to between 2 billion and 3 billion euro. Is this situation tragic? No, for four reasons. In practice, what is a three to four-year delay for an aircraft that will last for nearly half a century, especially when there is no real alternative? In operational terms, the Airbus A400M gives European armies real autonomy and the capacity to intervene in almost all terrains worldwide. In economic terms, having 40,000 jobs – including subcontractors – and a solid industrial base in the midst of an economic crisis is by no means insignificant. Lastly, the project’s technological knock-on effects can fuel research for years and give Europe a real advance. So it makes sense to tighten up the programme and renegotiate certain aspects of the contract, but not to call it into question or abandon it altogether. Giving up would be a serious scientific, commercial, economic and strategic mistake - in short, a political mistake. Europe would regret it for a long time to come...(see our Insight feature)