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The UK has been in talks with Sweden as it sets about scheming its next-generation warplane – a Typhoon successor required for service around 2040. Revealed as this magazine was going to press, the early discussions are centred on possible collaboration on a new fighter. If it proceeds, the programme could see BAE Systems and Saab working together to engineer a rival to the Franco- German Future Combat Air System (FCAS).
At this stage, it’s unclear if either of these projects will involve a manned or unmanned aircraft. However, the Franco-German effort has made more progress: on June 19 the German defence minister, Ursula von der Leyen, and her French counterpart, Florence Parly, signed a declaration of intent to provide a formal framework for the FCAS. Until now, there’s been no signal that either Paris or Berlin is eager to include the UK in their sixthgeneration fighter plans – at least, not at this early stage. (It’s worth bearing in mind that the Franco-German fighter project is different to the Anglo-French FCAS, which seeks…
