France and Germany abandon joint project to build European fighter jet
Paris and Berlin conclude firms involved unable to agree on way forward in blow to Europe’s common defence push
TL;DR
- France and Germany have jointly decided to abandon the Future Combat Air System (FCAS) project.
- The companies involved, France's Dassault Aviation and the European aerospace group Airbus, were unable to agree on leadership and control.
- Disagreements also existed regarding intellectual property, technology transfers, and differing national military needs, such as nuclear capability and aircraft carrier compatibility.
- The €100bn project, launched in 2017, aimed to develop a sixth-generation fighter jet to replace Rafale and Eurofighter jets by 2040.
- The abandonment is seen as a significant blow to Europe's common defence efforts.
- There is a possibility that the development of drones and a combat data cloud within the FCAS framework may continue as a separate European system.