Airbus is using the World Defense Show 2026 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, this week to relaunch its A400M tactical airlifter sales campaign in the country to meet the Kingdom’s requirement for around 30 aircraft.

At a Feb. 11 briefing, Airbus outlined how it is incorporating feedback from the Royal Saudi Air Force (RSAF) to tune the aircraft’s performance to local requirements.

On the important industrialization level, Airbus and the General Authority for Military Industries (GAMI) signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) on a “joint road map to enable local manufacturing in the field of military industries.” While not connected specifically at this stage with an A400M commitment, the Airbus/GAMI deal helps put Airbus in a better position to win a major order and builds upon past collaboration between the two organizations.

After a demonstration tour to the region two years ago and feedback from the RSAF, Airbus is installing several new features into the A400M. The company hopes this will be enough to stop the Kingdom from buying a large fleet of Lockheed Martin C-130J Hercules.

The European giant is set to increase the aircraft’s maximum takeoff weight from 37 to 40 tons, says Gerd Weber, head of the A400M Project. “This would allow the large equipment, including tanks, that are used in Saudi Arabia,” he says. “Most of this increase will come through software upgrades to the flight envelope that could only be done after 10 years of A400M operations.”

A400M Project Test Pilot Jon Taylor says “there are two main areas we are working on to do that—through loads analysis and then creating modifications to the flight control computers and flight control surfaces. This is now beyond the feasibility study and in development for 2028-29.”

Another need is VIP transportation, and Weber said the company will use its newly developed roll-on/roll-off VIP modules, just as they are on the current RSAF Lockheed VC-130Hs.

Airbus and GAMI have already successfully collaborated on the sale and subsequent maintenance, repair and overhaul of six A330MRTTs for Saudi Arabia, while another four are on order.

Together they will strengthen industrial cooperation, including MRO and capability development of the A400M, based on their work with the A330MRTT.

With 178 firm A400M orders and 137 delivered to 10 customers, Airbus is eager to keep A400M production beyond the next five years, and a sizable Saudi order would do just that.