European firms unite in bid to rival SpaceX

Key European aerospace firms have agreed to pool their space operations into a single business in a bid to compete in the rapidly developing space industry against rivals including SpaceX.Pitched as a 'European Space Champion', the new company will be headquartered in Toulouse, employ around 25,000 people and have an annual turnover of €6.5bn ($7.5bn, £5.6bn).The three companies, Airbus, Leonardo and Thales, will…