Latest news with #Edgewing
Arab News
10-07-2025
- Business
- Arab News
Report: Japan, UK, Italy open to Saudi joining fighter-jet program
DUBAI: Japan, the UK and Italy are open to having Saudi Arabia join their next-generation fighter-jet initiative, but only once the project has reached a more advanced stage and key issues have been resolved, according to The Japan Times. The Global Combat Air Program is a joint effort to develop a sixth-generation fighter. It will likely remain a trilateral initiative until after the GCAP International Government Organization, or GIGO, and the industry-led joint venture Edgewing sign their first international contract, likely by the end of 2025, the newspaper reported recently. The GIGO, officially inaugurated on Monday in Reading, England, was established last year to oversee government-level coordination for the program. Edgewing, launched last month, brings together the UK's BAE Systems, Italy's Leonardo, and the Japan Aircraft Industrial Enhancement Co., and is responsible for designing and developing the aircraft. 'There is no preclusion in having Saudi Arabia join the program, but we first have to define certain criteria and clarify all the points,' one source told The Japan Times, speaking after a virtual meeting between the GCAP nations' defense ministers on Monday. Riyadh has been 'encouraged' to build up its aerospace expertise — including potentially acquiring and assembling Eurofighter Typhoons — before entering the GCAP, the newspaper reported. In addition to Saudi Arabia, several other countries are said to have expressed interest in joining the program. These include two unnamed European countries, as well as one Middle Eastern and one Asian nation, according to a source cited by The Japan Times. The terms of participation and contributions of any future member states remain undefined. Any expansion of the program would require unanimous approval from Japan, the UK and Italy. The GCAP aircraft will be Japan's first major defense development with partners other than the US. It is intended to replace the aging F-2 fighter jets used by Japan's Air Self-Defense Force, as well as the Eurofighters operated by the UK and Italy. The new jets are scheduled to enter service by 2035. With the conceptual design phase complete, the program is moving into detailed design and development, and a demonstrator flight is expected within two to three years. Despite overall satisfaction with the program's progress, some tensions remain, particularly around access to sensitive intellectual property and full technology sharing. In April, Italy's Defense Minister Guido Crosetto publicly criticized the UK for not fully disclosing technology to its partners, in an interview with Reuters. It is a concern that The Japan Times understands is still unresolved.
Japan Times
08-07-2025
- Business
- Japan Times
Japan, U.K, Italy open to Saudis joining next-gen fighter program
Japan, Britain and Italy are in tacit agreement that Saudi Arabia could be allowed to join their fighter aircraft development program — but only once the multibillion-dollar project is well under way and the partners have cleared all outstanding points, including concerns over tech-sharing, sources familiar with the issues say. This means that Riyadh and other future potential partners would likely only be able to join the Global Combat Air Program after the GCAP International Government Organization (GIGO) and the Edgewing joint venture sign their first international contract, which is expected by the end of this year. GIGO, whose headquarters opened Monday in the English town of Reading, was set up by the three governments last year to manage the project, while Edgewing — which brings together Britain's BAE Systems, Italy's Leonardo and the Japan Aircraft Industrial Enhancement Co. (JAIEC) — was launched last month and will be responsible for the fighter's design and development. 'There is no preclusion in having Saudi Arabia join the program, but we first have to define certain criteria and clarify all the points,' one source said after the defense ministers of the GCAP partner countries held a virtual meeting on the program Monday. Riyadh has reportedly been encouraged to first gain the industrial know-how and experience it needs by procuring Eurofighter Typhoon fighter jets and setting up assembly lines for the aircraft before entering the sixth-generation GCAP program. Several other countries have also been reported to be interested in joining the project, with the source saying that these include 'a couple of other European countries' as well as another nation in the Middle East and one other in Asia. The exact role or contribution that Saudi Arabia or any other potential future partner could make, if admitted, is still uncertain. What is clear is that any expansion would require unanimous consent by GCAP countries. The future sixth-generation aircraft, which marks the first time that Japan is cooperating with countries other than the United States to meet a major defense requirement, is intended to replace aging Air Self-Defense Force F-2 jets, as well as British and Italian Eurofighters. The first units are expected to enter service by 2035. With the aircraft's conceptual design stage complete, the project is now set to advance to the detailed design and development phases, with a first flight of a demonstrator aircraft expected within two to three years. The GCAP members appear to be generally satisfied with the progress made so far, but sources say the parties involved appear to still be ironing out differences over access to intellectual property and reluctance to fully share technologies. The first signs of this became public in April, when Italian Defense Minister Guido Crosetto accused London of not fully sharing technologies with Rome and Tokyo in an interview with Reuters in April. No details have emerged about the type of technologies the British are reportedly holding back, but The Japan Times understands these issues are persisting and could impact the project going forward unless resolved in a timely manner. Just how much this will affect the envisaged 2035 entry-into-service date of the new supersonic aircraft is unclear.
Yomiuri Shimbun
08-07-2025
- Business
- Yomiuri Shimbun
Japanese, British, Italian Defense Ministers Discuss Fighter Jet Project; All Agree on Accelerating Development through Design and Management Entity Cooperation
Defense Minister Gen Nakatani on Monday held a trilateral videoconference with British Secretary of State for Defence John Healey and Italian Defense Minister Guido Crosetto, in which they all affirmed that their three countries will work together to advance the development of a next-generation fighter jet. Japan, Britain and Italy have all contributed capital to this project, and on June 20 they established Edgewing, a joint venture which will be responsible for designing the fighter, among other tasks. The three ministers also agreed that the work needs to be expedited, and so contracts will be concluded by the end of the year between Edgewing and the GCAP (Global Combat Air Program) International Government Organization (GIGO), an intergovernmental entity for managing the joint development project. Having these two bodies link up is expected to simplify the joint development process.
Japan Today
22-06-2025
- Business
- Japan Today
Joint venture for Japan-Britain-Italy fighter jet project launched
Companies from Japan, Britain and Italy have announced the official launch of a joint venture to develop a next-generation fighter jet by 2035, appointing its first CEO from major Italian defense firm Leonardo S.p.A. Japan Aircraft Industrial Enhancement Co -- set up by Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Ltd and an aerospace industry group -- along with Britain's BAE Systems plc and Leonardo each holds a 33.3 percent share in the joint venture named Edgewing. Headquartered in Britain, Edgewing will design and develop the combat aircraft. It will play a central role in achieving the program's goals, including having the fighter in service by 2035, the companies said. "We are not only delivering the next-generation combat air system -- we aim to set a new global standard for partnership, innovation and trust," Edgewing CEO Marco Zoff, formerly managing director of Leonardo Aircraft Division, said in a statement on Friday. The Global Combat Air Program was announced in 2022 as Japan and the European countries moved to strengthen security cooperation in response to China's increasing military activities in the Indo-Pacific region and Russia's invasion of Ukraine. An international body to manage the program on behalf of the participating nations, the GCAP International Government Organization, was launched in December last year, also in Britain. Masami Oka, head of the organization and formerly a senior Japanese Defense Ministry official, said in the statement that he welcomed the launch of Edgewing, adding that "effective and empowered collaboration" between his organization and Edgewing will be critical to the success of GCAP. © KYODO
Nikkei Asia
20-06-2025
- Business
- Nikkei Asia
Japan, UK, Italy form Edgewing joint venture for next-gen fighter jet
LONDON -- Japan, the U.K. and Italy announced on Friday the founding of a joint venture named Edgewing to handle the design of the next-generation fighter jet under development by the three countries. The plan to develop a sixth-generation aircraft whose capabilities exceed current fighters like the U.S. F-35 began in December 2022. The partner countries aim to deploy the new jet in 2035.
