Manfred Bischoff, chairman of the European aerospace giant EADS, on Thursday deplored the launch of a trade war between the European Union and the US over subsidies in the aerospace industry, saying that the idea of "national fights over national products in our industry is outdated".

His comments come a day after the US government initiated the biggest dispute in the history of the World Trade Organisation, when it filed a complaint alleging that Airbus, the civil aircraft manufacturing arm of the European Aeronautic Defence and Space company, had received $15bn in illegal launch aid.