Airbus
Airbus concept for the combat fighter of the European project FCAS, Future Combat Air System
Tension between Airbus and Dassault appears to have reached a point of no return. Airbus wasted no time, and is already talking to Saab to work together on a new platform to create the sixth-generation European combat fighter.
Failed: a Airbus ea Dassault Aviation were unable to reach agreement on how to jointly develop the Future Combat Air System (FCAS), an exclusively European new generation fighter.
Undone the marriage between the two companies, Airbus has now turned to a new partner: the Swedish Saabwhich recently released its last car, to now dedicate itself exclusively to the industry that was at its origins, almost 100 years ago: defense and aeronautics, where it has .
“We are not flirting… We want to build 6th generation fighter planes as quickly as possible. I don’t want to see 6th generation fighters purchased from the USA, as we did with the 5th”, he said in a recent interview with the CEO of Airbus Defense and Space, Michael Schoellhorn.
The European aerospace giant is preparing to abandon the current alliance and create a joint company with the Swedish manufacturerwith the aim of developing the desired European fighter of the future.
The union between the two companies would rewrite the architecture of continental defense. European air forces are buy North American F-35 fighter jets on a large scale, fueling fears of a total dependence of future exports from Washington, says the .
Schoellhorn held private talks with German and Swedish state officials to explore this new avenue. In the interview with the Swedish publication, the executive admitted that “we are open to many things. For Airbus, the manned combat aircraft remains an open question.”
“Sweden and Saab are candidates with vast experience… We have difficulties that everyone knows about. So the time has come to actively explore other optionswhich is what we are doing now.”
For its part, Saab is independently investigating a manned successor to its Gripen fighter, a fleet of combat dronesor a combination of the two technologies.
European defense companies are investing large sums in autonomous combat drones. Airbus presented its concept and drone to the German army, while Boeing and Rheinmetall proposed the model.
Airbus and Saab’s joint strategy includes airborne platforms for early warningfocusing on the Swedish company’s system, which has just closed orders from France and Canada.
“If we joined forces, we could form a very capable teamin a position to provide many future capabilities”, concluded Schoellhorn.
The Airbus leader demanded that European politicians make a definitive decision before the end of the year, to avoid a strategic disaster.
“If we want to have something that can be called sixth generation and that will be on the air before the 2040s, we have to act now. We wait impatiently to see what the politicians decide. If at the end of the year we continue in limbo, it will be very complicated”, concludes the executive.
