Overview
- France and Germany agreed to abandon the joint Next Generation Fighter after talks failed, and German ministers and officials have confirmed the fighter element of FCAS is no longer proceeding as planned.
- The consortium, which signed a strategic positioning paper on June 11, commits eight German firms led by Airbus to take responsibility for a European sixth‑generation fighter and asked Chancellor Merz to award contracts by the second half of 2026.
- Spanish companies including Indra, GMV, Grupo Oesía, ITP Aero and Sener are aligning closely with the German grouping, and Airbus has circulated concept material showing a crewed fighter operating with uncrewed platforms.
- Berlin is weighing three main options: back Team Gen 6, buy additional U.S. F‑35 jets, or join the Global Combat Air Programme, leaving a mid‑July Franco‑German ministerial council as a likely decision point.
- The split was driven by long‑running Airbus‑Dassault disputes over prime roles, workshare and intellectual property, and it leaves shared FCAS work on drones and the combat‑cloud intact while raising risks of compensation claims and wider industrial realignment in Europe.