Airbus has drawn up contingency plans to slow or stop production if France is placed under a drastic lockdown due to coronavirus, two people familiar with the matter said. The plans, which range from a progressive slowdown to a full shutdown in production, anticipate a ripple effect from the lockdown across the planemaker’s main industrial network in four countries, France, Germany, Britain and Spain, they said. Contingency planning accelerated on Monday as French President Emmanuel Macron prepared to make a televised address to the nation at 1900 GMT, amid speculation that France may consider new measures to deal with the coronavirus outbreak.
