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A consortium led by Airbus has proposed developing a next-generation fighter jet after the collapse of a high-profile Franco-German warplane programme, one of the companies involved told the AFP news agency on Tuesday.
The move comes a day after German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and French President Emmanuel Macron ended the original project following years of disagreements between the industrial partners.
Munich-based defence electronics company Hensoldt said it had joined forces with Airbus Defence and Space, Autoflug, Diehl Defence, Rohde & Schwarz, Liebherr, MBDA and MTU Aero Engines to draw up an alternative plan.
A company spokesperson said the proposal had been submitted to German Defence Minister Boris Pistorius. The Financial Times, which first reported the initiative, said it had also been sent to Merz’s office.
The companies have “jointly drawn up a position paper on the Future Combat Air System (FCAS) and the associated Next Generation Weapon System (NGWS),” the spokesperson said.
More details are expected on Thursday during an announcement at the Berlin ILA Air Show.
A setback for European defence integration
Germany’s defence ministry confirmed the proposal’s existence. Pistorius said Berlin was assessing “which direction we take.”
“We’ve also been in discussions on this for months with various stakeholders,” he added.
Pistorius said the collapse of the original Franco-German project had “pained” him.
“I know how important Franco-German cooperation is in Europe, but ultimately you have to draw a line between head and heart,” he said.
The FCAS programme had been viewed as a flagship European defence project, aimed at strengthening military cooperation as Europe faces a more assertive Russia and increasingly strained relations with the United States.
However, the initiative was hampered by long-running disputes between France’s Dassault Aviation and Airbus, the lead industrial partner for Germany and a major partner for Spain in the FCAS programme.
German partners opposed efforts by Dassault to assume greater control over building the aircraft.
Merz has also argued that Germany, unlike France, does not require fighter jets capable of carrying nuclear weapons or operating from aircraft carriers.
Additional sources • AFP