The Nostalgia of Forgotten Gods: Matra, France, 1965-2003

Matra was founded in France at the beginning of World War II to operate in the aviation and defense sectors and then moved into the aerospace and transportation fields after the war. A key figure for Matra was engineer Jean Luc Lagardère, who was chosen in 1962 by founders Marcel Chassagny and Sylvain Floirat as the company's chief executive officer. With his help, new fields were explored, diversifying its activities in automation, telecommunications, information technology, urban transportation, and automobiles.