Amid a row between manufacturers over who will lead the €100bn (£87bn) project, Airbus has suggested splitting Europe’s faltering future fighter jet program into two separate fighters.
The company’s defense arm – representing Germany and Spain – and French partner Dassault Aviation are locked in a battle over the jet component of the Future Combat Air System (FCAS), which will include autonomous drones and a future “combat communication cloud”.
Guillaume Fourie, chief executive of Airbus, said on Thursday that the standoff over the planned next-generation jet “should not jeopardize the entire future of this high-tech European capability, which strengthens our collective defence.
“If our customers mandate it, we support a two-war solution and are committed to playing a leading role in such a reorganized FCAS delivered through European cooperation.”
Earlier this week, the German chancellor, Friedrich Merz, signaled that the planned fighter jet was inadequate for Germany’s needs, in the latest blow to the project. The German military doesn’t need a nuclear-capable fighter, but France does, he said on German political podcast Machtwechsel, adding that it was “not a political dispute” but a technical one between the two countries.
Europe’s FCAS, announced in 2017, has faced repeated obstacles amid Airbus and Dassault’s power struggle and, more recently, what the French and German governments want from the project. Germany, France and Spain are expected to decide soon whether to proceed with the next phase of the program as planned or to abandon the jet and move forward with other elements.
“We’ve spent a lot of time and energy supporting this program, which has several pillars. One of those pillars is the so-called next-generation fighter, and it’s important to say that the other pillars are working well and making good progress,” Fourey said.
He said that while the project is “at a critical stage … we believe the program as a whole makes sense.”
“If there is a way forward with the two fighters, we believe it will be an opportunity to have other partners with us, but it’s up to our customers to decide who they want to join forces with.”
Airbus saw its annual profit rise 23% last year to €5.2bn, but shares fell 6% on Thursday as supply chain problems forced it to scale back ambitious production targets for its passenger jets.
US engine maker Pratt & Whitney has failed to keep up with demand for its best-selling A320 model, resulting in a “significant shortage” of engines, Airbus said.
The world’s largest planemaker expects to increase production of A320 planes to 75 per month next year, up from 60 currently, but has now said it could scale back. Airbus plans to deliver 870 jets to customers this year, rising to 793 in 2025.
The supply problem compounds Airbus’ problems with the A320 after it discovered a problem with fuselage panels in December that forced hundreds of jets to be inspected.
Airbus deliveries in January fell to the lowest level of any month since 2020, which Fourey said was down to inspections. The drop helped rival Boeing, which delivered 600 commercial jets after years of crises, the highest number since 2018.
