The Seguin brothers found the company "Société des moteurs Gnome" in Gennevilliers, near Paris, to make rotary engines for airplanes.

Passot

Hispano Suiza

Creation of the Hispano-Suiza works in France to produce automobiles. Three years later, the company begins to make aircraft engines.

Snecma

Louis Verdet founds the company "Société des moteurs Le Rhône". In just two years it becomes Gnome's main competitor, prior to being acquired by the older company in 1915, creating the aircraft engine company "Société des Moteurs Gnome & Rhône".

DR

First flight across the Mediterranean, by Roland Garros, and first loops flown (by Pyotr Nesterov and Adolphe Pégoud). What these firsts have in common is that the aircraft are powered by Gnome engines.

Founding of Messier Automobiles, which quickly becomes SFMA. The company changes its name to Messier in 1932 and specializes in aircraft landing gear.

Founding of the aircraft equipment company Labinal.

Sagem

Creation of the company "Société d'Applications Générales d'Electricité et de Mécanique" (Sagem) by Marcel Môme. Originally focused on mechanical equipment, the company quickly specializes in precision equipment for the French navy. In 1939, Sagem takes over Société Anonyme de Télécommunications (SAT).

ACAM

George Dowty creates Aircraft Components Co., which becomes Dowty Equipment Ltd. in 1940 and then joins British Messier in 1960. 

Turbomeca

Joseph Szydlowski founds the company Turbomeca to make compressors for aircraft engines.

France creates SEPR (Société d'Etude de la Propulsion par Réaction), a company specialized in rocket propulsion technologies. 

Gnome & Rhône is nationalized and renamed Snecma (Société Nationale d'Etude et de Construction de Moteurs d'Aviation), which also consolidates most French aero-engine manufacturers, some dating back to the turn of the century. 

Snecma develops its first military jet engine, the Atar 101V.

Roger Cuvillier, an engineer at Sopelem, invents the Pan Cinor, ancestor of the zoom lens, which will be a big hit with professional and amateur filmmakers alike. In 1996 Sopelem is acquired by SFIM, which will be taken over by Sagem in 1999.

First flight of the Alouette II helicopter powered by a Turbomeca "Artouste" gas turbine.

SAT (Sagem) designs the world's first infrared guidance system for an air-to-air missile.

Flight of the first inertial reference system designed by Sagem. Four years later, the Diamant A rocket, guided by this type of system, will send the first French satellite into orbit.

Hispano-Suiza joins Snecma.

Hispano-Snecma

The merger of SEPR and the rocket engine division of Snecma gives birth to the company SEP (Société Européenne de Propulsion). 

First flight of the Concorde supersonic transport (SST), featuring a number of systems from Snecma (Olympus 593 engines, designed and developed by Snecma and Rolls-Royce, the electrically actuated braking system designed by Messier, main landing gear and braking control system developed by Hispano-Suiza, etc.). This flight marks the start of Snecma's business growth in the civil aviation market. 

Aérospatial

First flight of the Alpha Jet trainer, powered by a Larzac jet engine developed jointly by Snecma and Turbomeca (subsequently deployed by 13 air forces and governments).

Snecma enters the commercial aviation engine market by signing a partnership agreement with General Electric Aircraft Engines to make the CFM56 turbofan, via their joint company, CFM International. The previous year, during the historic summit meeting in Reykjavik, presidents Georges Pompidou and Richard Nixon had already laid the foundations for this partnership.

Following a series of mergers in 1971 between Snecma, Hispano-Suiza, Messier and Bugatti, the company Messier-Hispano-Bugatti is founded to group all landing gear businesses. Hispano-Suiza also bolsters its aviation business and makes its first thrust reversers. 

Bernard Didier founds Morpho Systèmes, specialized in biometrics. Calling on a breakthrough technology for fingerprint identification, it goes from success to success. In 1984, the company creates North American Morpho Systèmes Inc., now MorphoTrak Inc., which focuses on the U.S. police criminal investigation market. 

Messier-Hispano-Bugatti supplies the first carbon brake for a commercial airplane, an Airbus A300 (providing weight savings per aircraft of 550 kg). The very first carbon brakes had been developed a few years earlier, in conjunction with SEP, for the Dassault Aviation Mirage 2000 fighter.

Sagem acquires Morpho (biometric fingerprint recognition systems), which had been founded in 1982. 

Snecma takes full control of its space subsidiary SEP.

Turbomeca and Labinal join the Snecma group.

Hurel-Dubois merges with Hispano-Suiza's nacelle business to create Hurel-Hispano. Three years later, the company changes its name to Aircelle.

Safran is created by the merger of Snecma and Sagem.

First contract for the electric brake, from China Eastern Airlines. This major innovation was developed for the Boeing 787 Dreamliner by Messier-Bugatti. 

Snecma starts a program to develop a new-generation business jet engine, Silvercrest. 

Safran refocuses on core markets, as it divests its broadband communications and mobile phone businesses.

Safran continues to expand its security business with the acquisition of Sdu-Identification BV (which later becomes Morpho BV).

Safran and GE renew their CFM International partnership until 2040.

Europe launches a vast research program called Clean Sky, a Joint Technology Initiative (JTI) equally financed by the European Commission and the European aerospace industry (including Safran). The aim is to develop new technologies that will make air transport cleaner, quieter and more fuel-efficient. 

Morpho unveils the world's first contactless biometric facial and fingerprint recognition technologies ("Face on the fly" and "Finger on the fly"). 

The new-generation LEAP turbofan engine, designed and developed by CFM International, is chosen by Comac of China as the sole Western powerplant for its new single-aisle commercial jet, the C919, slated to enter service in 2016.

Creation of Safran University.

Safran share added to the French stock market index, CAC 40.

Les Echos

Sagem and Thales create a 50/50 optronics joint venture, Optrolead. They also take full control of their 50/50 joint venture, Sofradir, and transfer their infrared detector operations to this company.

Les Echos

First public demonstration of the EGTS electric taxiing system.

Acquisition of GEPS (Goodrich Electrical Power Systems), making Safran a world leader in aircraft electrical systems. Safran consolidates all businesses concerning the design of these systems, leading to the creation of Labinal Power Systems, grouping Labinal, Technofan and Safran Power.

AFP

Creation of Safran Composites, a research center dedicated to composite materials.

Launch of Clean Sky 2, follow-on to the European research program Clean Sky. One of its objectives is a 75% reduction in CO2 emissions per passenger-kilometer by 2050.

Flight International

Safran and Airbus create a 50/50 joint venture to offer a new family of launch vehicles, combining competitiveness, versatility and high performance. 

Denis Allard / REA

Safran acquires Eaton Aerospace's aircraft electrical distribution and integrated cockpit solutions, bolstering its airborne electrical power strategy.

Air&Cosmos

Rolls-Royce and Hispano-Suiza (Safran) create a 50/50 joint venture, specialized in the design, development, production and support of accessory drive trains (ADT) for all of Rolls-Royce's future civil aircraft engines. 

bnpix / Safran

Creation of Safran Corporate Ventures, a corporate venture capital (CVC) entity to finance startups that have developed breakthrough technologies or approaches in Safran core businesses.

iStock

Creation of a new entity called Safran Analytics to develop the Group expertise in all aspects of Big Data. Safran Analytics will help improve our processes and develop innovative services to reduce customers' operating costs.

iStock

Inauguration of Safran Tech, the Group Research & Technology center, located in the Paris suburb of Saclay. Grouping nearly 300 researchers from many different horizons, Safran Tech was founded to pool the Group's different areas of expertise and foster breakthrough technologies.

Thierry Mamberti / Safran

The Patroller™ was recently chosen by the French government. Starting in 2018, 14 Patroller™ systems will gradually replace the Sperwer tactical drone systems now deployed by the French army.

Jean-Michel Turpin / CAPA Pictures / Safran

All the companies of the Group now share the same logo and their names include the Safran brand name.

The LEAP-1B and -1C received dual EASA/FAA certification and the LEAP-1A started revenue service on an A320neo for launch customer Pegasus Airlines.

Cyril Abad / CAPA Pictures / Safran

Safran enters into exclusive negotiations with Advent International for bringing together Safran Identity & Security with Oberthur Technologies.

David Copithorne / Safran

Airbus Safran Launchers JV finalized: Europe's new space industry champion fully operational.

Airbus Safran Launchers 2016

The CFM56 is the world's best-selling commercial jet engine, with over 30,000 delivered as of 2016.

Adrien Daste / Safran

easyJet and CFM International celebrated 20 years of partnership.

Eric Drouin / Safran

Safran inaugurates flagship regional site: Safran Toulouse.

Cyril Abad / CAPA Pictures / Safran

Cessna chose the Silvercrest to power its new Citation Hemisphere.

Adrien Daste / Safran

Safran invested in Diota, the leading French publisher of augmented reality software solutions for industry.

Cyril Abad / CAPA Pictures / Safran

Completion of the sale of Safran's identity and security activities to Advent International.

IstockPhoto