Germany Considering Pulling Out of FCAS Fighter Program

Germany is reportedly considering withdrawing from the Future Combat Air System (FCAS) fighter jet program it is developing with France.

As per reports, Berlin is dissatisfied with the current workshare structure, with French industry said to be pushing for an 80% share of the crewed New Generation Fighter (NGF) component. German defense officials believe this undermines the balance of cooperation, prompting discussions on potential alternatives.

One option under review is joining the Global Combat Air Program (GCAP), led by the United Kingdom, Italy, and Japan. Another possibility, though considered less likely, is continuing FCAS with Spain and Belgium without France.

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz discussed the situation with Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez in Madrid this week. “We share the assessment that the current situation is unsatisfactory. We are not advancing with this project,” Merz said. “We are both speaking with the French government, and we want a solution as soon as possible.”

Currently, France, Germany, Spain, and Belgium are partners in FCAS, with the project intended to replace German Eurofighters around 2050 while complementing 35 F-35A Lightning II jets being procured from the U.S. Reports suggest Berlin may consider increasing its F-35 fleet as an interim measure.

According to Politico, the German defense ministry held talks with Airbus last week, and German Luftwaffe officials briefed Bundestag lawmakers on the issue. Social Democratic lawmaker Andreas Schwarz said: “At some point parliament will have to say: ‘Either we need this aircraft, or we don’t.’”

The program’s future now rests on high-level negotiations. Defense ministers from France, Germany, and Spain are due to meet next month to decide whether to proceed to Phase 2, which includes producing a demonstrator aircraft.

The dispute echoes past European defense splits, including the 1980s divergence that led to the Dassault Rafale and the Eurofighter Typhoon. The Maritime Airborne Warfare (MAWS) project, aimed to develop a next-generation maritime patrol aircraft to replace the aging P-3C Orion and Atlantique 2 aircraft by 2035 was also dissolved, after Germany opted for U.S.-built Boeing P-8A Poseidons and France pursued its Airbus A321MPA.

Unless a compromise is reached soon, Europe risks another fragmentation in fighter development, with multiple competing projects stretching resources and export potential.