UPDATE 6-Buyers outline deal on A400M after debut flight

* EADS asked to respond to joint government position

* Audit found 11 bln euros lost or at risk, sources say

* A400M makes "sparkling" maiden flight, pilot says

(Adds Spanish aid to develop A350, paragraph 24)

By Tim Hepher and Sabine Siebold

SEVILLE, Spain, Dec 11 (Reuters) - Buyers of Airbus's new military transporter buried differences over how to cope with soaring costs on Europe's largest defence project as the plane shored up its future with a long-awaited maiden flight.

A German government official said European NATO nations that have budgeted 20 billion euros ($29.45 billion) for the A400M to support their global operations had come up with a joint response to pressure from Airbus for more cash to save the project from collapse.

"The position between the nations has been agreed," Ruediger Wolf, a German state secretary, said following talks held while the A400M performed three hours of flight tests.

Analysts have said a successful first flight would boost the chances that politicians would strike a deal on the future of the plane, nicknamed "grizzly" for its sturdy design.

The inaugural flight was two years behind schedule following delays in engine software development and other snags.

Airbus has sold 180 aircraft to Britain, France, Germany, Spain, Belgium, Luxembourg and Turkey. An extra four are earmarked for Malaysia, but South Africa has cancelled an order.

Manufacturers say the delays have pushed the project 5 billion euros over budget and building the plane is "mission impossible" without help from purchasing governments -- most of whom have ruled out any more defence cash amid the recession.

To resolve the impasse, Airbus parent EADS (EAD.PA) is offering to take on the remaining development risk, which sources familiar with the matter said auditors had valued at 3 billion euros.

That comes on top of 2.4 billion euros already written off by Europe's largest aerospace group for the troubled project.

In return, EADS has asked the buyers to come up with 5.3 billion euros in increased production costs that were also identified in an audit by PricewaterhouseCoopers, sources said.

If buyers do not want to increase their spending, they can opt to take some 40 fewer planes for the same amount of money. This would amount to a 25 percent increase in the ticket price of each plane to about 140 million euros, the sources said.

EXTENDED DEADLINE

The discussion confirms the emergence of a possible price compromise detailed by Reuters last month. [ID:nGEE5AO0Y4]

Germany has until now ruled out making concessions on either volume or price, calling on EADS to stick to its contract and holding out against a compromise backed by several other buyers.

Wolf said on Friday that Germany wanted to keep its order for 60 planes but left open its position on finances, saying only that no concessions had been made in writing.

He told Reuters EADS has been asked to respond on the joint position adopted by end-year and a standstill agreement between the parties could be extended until end-January. [ID:nBAT005002]

The maiden flight is two years behind schedule but delays will be extended to 3-4 years to allow time for production to stabilise, with first deliveries not seen before late 2012.

"It was a fantastic flight ... the performance on take-off was sparkling," chief pilot Ed Strongman said after landing the plane.

The sortie came days before Boeing (BA.N) carries out its own crucial test flight of a new airliner, the 787 Dreamliner.

Speaking in Brussels, German Chancellor Angela Merkel said Europe needed a new military transport plane but could not wait forever for it.

Britain's Ministry of Defence called the maiden flight "an important milestone". "The UK remains committed to A400M, but not at any cost. We regard the ongoing negotiations as the best means by which to determine a more deliverable programme," the ministry said in a statement.

The audit highlighted the stakes involved in efforts to stabilise the project, with almost 11 billion euros in total cost overruns or still at risk on top of the original budget.

Urena said Airbus would need to export another 180 planes on top of the core European contract to make money on the A400M.

Airbus sees a market for 300-500 such aircraft.

Spain's cabinet, meanwhile, said it had authorised 583 million euros in loans to Airbus's Spanish unit and subcontractors in order to develop the A350 aircraft. * Sizing up the Airbus A400M "grizzly" [ID:nGEE5B92KT] * For a related graphic, please go to: