Germany opposes changes to A400M contract - source

BERLIN, Nov 18 - Germany opposes any contractual changes to the delayed A400M military transporter project with European plane maker Airbus, a German government source familiar with the issue said on Wednesday.

Airbus parent EADS <EAD.PA> is in talks to rescue the 20 billion euro contract with the seven European nations that ordered the plane: Belgium, Britain, France, Germany, Luxembourg, Spain and Turkey.

A French official said on Saturday the contract could be handled in tranches with urgent needs tackled as a priority, including co-operation between states, where necessary, and some deliveries pushed back until a later date.

Germany has little willingness to compromise, however.

"No contractual changes," is the German position, the government source told Reuters.

German Defence Minister Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg travels to Paris later on Wednesday to meet Herve Morin, the French defence minister, and the A400M issue is likely to come up at their talks.

Germany's Handelsblatt newspaper also reported in its Wednesday edition that Guttenberg opposed any contractual changes to the A400M project to accommodate Airbus.

State secretaries from the countries who have ordered the A400M are due to meet in Berlin on Thursday to discuss the matter. (Reporting by Gernot Heller; writing by Paul Carrel; editing by Simon Jessop)