On Monday, 19 October 2026, the Basque Lehendakari Imanol Pradales to Toulouse, will travel to lead an economic mission to strengthen cooperation in Europe’s aerospace sector. The programme includes a visit to Airbus in Blagnac, including the A321 final assembly line, as well as a bilateral meeting with the president of the region of Occitanie, Carole Delga. Afterwards, 23 representatives from businesses and institutions will continue the programme until 21 October.
According to the Basque government, the mission aims to deepen contacts in the supply chains of major manufacturers and set in motion joint research and innovation initiatives. Participants include companies working in engines, aerostructures, components, machine tools and advanced manufacturing, as well as research centres from the Basque Research and Technology Alliance. In addition to Airbus, visits to Safran and Liebherr-Aerospace and discussions with the industry cluster Aerospace Valley and other stakeholders are on the agenda. The aim is to identify specific areas for cooperation with the ecosystem in Occitanie.
The Toulouse initiative stems from a meeting between Pradales and Carole Delga in Paris on 18 November 2025, where the idea of a sector-specific mission to Occitanie was launched. According to the government, the programme is organised by the industrial administration of the Gobierno Vasco and coordinated by Basque Trade and Investment. The exchange is intended to deepen bilateral relations beyond the economic sphere; the two regions already work together in cross-border frameworks such as the Pyrenees Working Community and the EU’s POCTEFA programme.
The government cites the sector’s economic importance in the Basque Country as justification for the initiative. According to the cluster HEGAN the Basque aerospace sector generated revenue of 3.413 billion euros in 2025, employed 15,133 people and exported goods worth 2.896 billion euros; research and development spending amounted to 213 million euros. Occitanie, in turn, brings together major manufacturers and a dense network of suppliers and research institutes – an environment seen as a springboard for new business and technological partnerships.
The expectation is that the talks will structure supply-chain contacts in the short term and, in the medium term, launch joint projects to boost productivity, competitiveness and resilience in the European aerospace sector. No specific agreements have been announced in advance; these are expected to emerge from the bilateral meetings and company visits in Toulouse.
Editor: Daniel Mayer (Article created with AI assistance).