A400M costs to rise 40 per cent

Costs for the troubled Airbus A400M military transport program could rise by as much as 37 per cent, according to French newspaper Les Echos.

Already delayed more than three years due to technical and industrial difficulties, a report from auditing firm PriceWaterhouseCoopers says the seven original partner nations are now faced with an increase in costs of between €5.3bn (A$8.6bn) and €7.4bn (A$12bn) over and above the original budget of €20bn (A$32bn) for the 180 aircraft they require.