Berlin and Paris pressure companies to reach agreement on fighter jets by mid-December

(Patria) - Germany and France are pressuring industrial leaders to find a solution for the problematic joint fighter jet project FCAS, or SCAF, by mid-December, two sources familiar with the matter told Reuters yesterday.

Speaking on condition of anonymity, one of the sources said that the chief executives of the companies involved should reach an agreement by December 18.

France's Dassault, Airbus and Indra - the latter two representing Germany and Spain respectively - are among the main companies involved in the Future Combat Air System (FCAS) to replace France's Rafale and Germany's and Spain's Eurofighters with next-generation fighter jets from 2040.

Launched in 2017 as a model for European defence cooperation, the project has been plagued by delays and internal disputes over work-sharing and intellectual property rights between France and Germany and their national industries.

Options now being considered include ending the project entirely or significantly scaling it back by eliminating important elements, including the development of a common fighter jet, according to sources familiar with the matter.

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and French President Emmanuel Macron intend to decide by the end of the year whether to proceed with the project or pursue an alternative approach.

"The political process has repeatedly shifted responsibility from the chancellors and presidents to the ministers, and then back to the ministries and procurement agencies," an industry source said, expressing frustration.

"The only real change is that French policy has become more unstable. The industry is now expected to find common ground that has long since disappeared from the political process," he added.

Berlin has blamed Dassault for blocking the next phase of the program, demanding sole leadership of the project. Sources said France had demanded a work-share of around eighty percent, but Dassault denied this.

Another source noted that the air force chiefs of the countries had been tasked with checking whether the national requirements for the future fighter jet matched, and emphasized that convergence had been established at the military level.