Since the spring of 2020, the aviation industry has suffered a slump in demand by about half due to the fall-out from the corona pandemic. Airlines and aircraft manufacturers assume that it will take years to get to back to pre-crisis levels.

Specifically, Diehl Aviation expects that the business volume in 2022 will be slightly more than half of 2019 sales levels. In its concept for the future, the company plans to retain all of its sites in Germany and to employ around 4,000 people worldwide and 3,000 people in Germany. Following a peak in employment in 2019 with around 6,000 employees and steps to improve flexibility already implemented since then, this corresponds to a reduction of up to 1,400 jobs in Germany by 2022. Lay-offs due to restructuring should be avoided to the extent possible by taking socially acceptable steps, including partial retirement, volunteer program, intra-group job portal, etc.

This will affect all divisions, sites and companies, albeit to varying degrees and to a different extent. These measures will enable Diehl Aviation to reverse the trend by 2022 and to return to prof-itability by 2023.

Moreover, Diehl Aviation will develop new products and get involved in new projects. Among other things, these include product innovations for touchless cabin functions in commercial aircraft, entering the Urban Air Mobility (UAM) market segment as well as taking part in the multi-national military Future Combat Air System (FCAS) project and also the development of sustainable light-weight materials as well as systems for flying with zero emissions.

On 16 November, management notified the economic committee about the concept for the future and commenced discussions with the works councils on implementing the concept. Staff were also informed about the plans. The aim is to conclude talks and commence restructuring measures in 2021.