UK-led fighter program is still open-ish to paying partners

LONDON — The prospect of another nation joining the trilateral Global Combat Air Program remains on the table, but an expansion would require additional work on an already demanding timeline, officials involved in the sixth-generation fighter effort said.

Representatives from the Italian, British and Japanese GCAP lead companies showcased a new concept model of their proposed aircraft at the Farnborough Airshow here , which featured a large wingspan for increased aerodynamics.

Executives noted that the latest version of the concept development was a representation of the power of the three-way cooperation between BAE Systems, Leonardo and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries.

“In the work we’ve done so far, with our colleagues in Japan and Italy, we find that our operational requirements align very well, there is a common approach with regards to what the threats are for the future and our collaboration is also very complementary,” Herman Claesen, managing director for future combat air systems at BAE Systems told reporters.

The possibility of the program expanding to include an additional nation has loomed for some time now, with the idea of Saudi Arabia in the mix tickling the imagination of the global aviation commentariat. Officially, there is no such course of action.

“What we can say is that we are developing a construct that is able and open for other partners –partners are absolutely important because the export market is relevant for the business case [of the program],” Guglielmo Maviglia, chief global combat air program officer at Leonardo, said.

The GCAP program is following a “very demanding timeline,” said Claesen, a reference to the envisioned in-service date of 2035.

When pressed on whether introducing a new country may cause delays in meeting the strict schedule, Maviglia said it was unlikely and that it would “require an extra effort.”

“What I can assure you is that in the event that such a decision was taken, it would not interrupt our ongoing activities – we have a clear picture about the program and hitting our targets,” he told Defense News.

Elisabeth Gosselin-Malo was a Europe correspondent for Defense News. She covers a wide range of topics related to military procurement and international security, and specializes in reporting on the aviation sector. She is based in Milan, Italy.

伦敦——参与第六代战斗机项目的官员表示，另一个国家加入三边全球作战空中计划的可能性仍然存在，但扩大该计划需要在已经十分紧迫的时间表上投入更多精力。

来自意大利、英国和日本 GCAP 牵头公司的代表在范堡罗航展上展示了他们提出的飞机的新概念模型，该模型具有较大的翼展以提高空气动力学性能。

高管们指出，最新版本的概念开发体现了 BAE 系统公司、莱昂纳多公司和三菱重工三方合作的力量。

BAE系统公司未来作战空中系统总经理赫尔曼·克莱森告诉记者：“到目前为止，我们与日本和意大利的同事们开展的工作表明，我们的作战需求非常一致，对于未来的威胁有着共同的看法，我们的合作也具有很强的互补性。”

该计划可能扩展至其他国家的传闻由来已久，沙特阿拉伯的加入更是引发了全球航空评论界的广泛讨论。但官方层面，目前尚无此类计划。

“我们可以说，我们正在开发一种能够与其他合作伙伴合作并向他们开放的架构——合作伙伴绝对重要，因为出口市场与该项目的商业案例息息相关，”莱昂纳多公司首席全球作战航空项目官古列尔莫·马维利亚说道。

克莱森表示，GCAP 项目遵循“非常严格的时间表”，指的是预计在 2035 年投入使用。

当被问及引入一个新国家是否会导致严格的进度安排出现延误时，马维利亚表示这种情况不太可能发生，而且这“需要付出额外的努力”。

“我可以向你们保证，如果做出这样的决定，也不会中断我们正在进行的活动——我们对该计划以及实现目标有着清晰的认识，”他告诉《防务新闻》。

伊丽莎白·戈斯林-马洛曾任《防务新闻》欧洲通讯员。她的报道涵盖军事采购和国际安全等广泛领域，尤其擅长航空领域的报道。她常驻意大利米兰。