Airbus parent EADS (EAD.PA) faced new criticism over state funding as its cash pile hit a record 12.2 billion euros ($17.3 billion) on Friday, only weeks after receiving European pledges to bail out a troubled plane project. Swelled by deposits from airlines ready to invest in new aircraft, the growing wealth of Europe's largest aerospace company confirms an economic rebound. Its shares rose by 5 percent, backed by encouraging first-quarter results. But its cash surplus remains a distraction for EADS, which last month closed a deal with European nations for a 3.5 billion euro bailout of its A400M army plane and plans to use a disputed system of state loans for its Airbus A350 airliner. In Germany, opposition Greens accused EADS of strong-arming European governmments into agreeing to provide the A400M funding by suggesting the Franco-German-led company could collapse.
Source
