WASHINGTON, March 7: The US government on Wednesday voiced its opposition to any state subsidies for Airbus as the embattled European plane maker undergoes a painful restructuring.

“The US position is clear that we are looking to have less, not more, subsidies going to large aircraft manufacturers,” Deputy US Trade Representative John Veroneau said.

The United States and European Union are locked in battle at the World Trade Organisation over state handouts allegedly given to both Airbus and its US rival Boeing.

French politicians have said that a capital increase is likely for Airbus, which plans to cut 10,000 jobs amid a cashflow crisis linked to the troubled development of its flagship project, the A380 superjumbo.

But the issue risks creating tensions between the German and French governments, which jointly control the European aerospace giant through a complex construction of multiple shareholdings, both public and private.

Airbus chief Louis Gallois said on Wednesday that for Airbus’s parent group EADS, “there is no urgency for a capital increase,” although eventually it will need new funds of “less than” 5.0 billion euros.

Veroneau, speaking at a meeting of the Washington International Trade Association, said he could not comment further on Airbus's internal travails.

But he reaffirmed: “It is important to try to move that (aviation) industry to a position where the market is not distorted by subsidies.”—AFP