France and Germany to discuss troubled fighter project, sources say

By Sabine Siebold, Tim Hepher and Michel Rose

BERLIN/PARIS, March 17 (Reuters) – Leaders of France and Germany will discuss the crisis-hit FCAS fighter programme on the sidelines of a European Union summit on Wednesday, two people familiar with the matter said.

Plans to develop a futuristic air combat system together with Spain are hanging by a thread amid a public dispute over control between France’s Dassault Aviation and Airbus, which represents Germany and Spain in the 100-billion-euro project.

The office of French President Emmanuel Macron confirmed that he and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz would meet ahead of the March 19-20 summit but declined to say whether they would discuss the FCAS fighter project.

Macron co-launched the project with then-German Chancellor Angela Merkel in 2017, with Spain joining later.

The plan calls for a digitally connected array of crewed fighters and combat drones to replace the Dassault Rafale and Airbus-backed Eurofighter from 2040. But manufacturers have fallen out over the next phase involving a flying demonstrator.

Dassault is pressing for clearer control of the core fighter part of the project, including choice of suppliers, while offering the same latitude to Airbus on the parts where it is already nominally in the lead. Airbus has said existing accords calling for equality between partners should be kept.

Relations between the two groups have soured to the point that few involved in the project believe it will go ahead, but any final decision must be made by national leaders, with Macron widely seen as resisting German industry calls to halt the work.

Speaking during a visit to New Delhi last month, Macron dismissed the prospect that industrial disputes could overshadow government decisions on the development of strategic weapons.

“There have been frictions between companies; that’s the life of business and of human organisations. But should that decide the strategy of states? The answer is no,” he told a news conference.

A collapse of the Franco-German-Spanish project, also known by its French initials SCAF, is likely to trigger a reshuffling of alliances in Europe’s fragmented defence industry.

Until now, Germany has co-operated on modern fighter developments with Britain, which this time is involved in the competing GCAP fighter project alongside Japan and Italy.

Sweden, which makes the independent Saab Gripen, is analysing its own future in the fighter market and is also seen as a potential partner for Airbus if FCAS collapses.

(Reporting by Tim Hepher, Sabine Siebold and Michel Rose. Editing by Mark Potter)