DefenseMacron rejects claims FCAS fighter program is dead amid Franco-German disputes
French President Emmanuel Macron said the Future Combat Air System (FCAS) fighter program remains viable, dismissing claims that the project has collapsed despite prolonged disputes between France and Germany over its industrial structure. He made the comments in an interview published on Monday by Le Monde.
Macron said the French and German air forces had recently reaffirmed the strategic need for the next-generation combat aircraft and agreed on its core specifications. He rejected suggestions that the program was beyond recovery, arguing that Europe could not afford to fragment its future combat aviation efforts.
The remarks follow months of stalled negotiations between the program’s main industrial partners, Dassault Aviation and Airbus. Disagreements over leadership of the fighter’s development and the division of work between the companies have prevented progress, pushing the project close to paralysis, according to industry and government sources cited by the Financial Times.
Reuters reported earlier that a meeting between the French, German and Spanish defense ministers in December failed to deliver a breakthrough on rescuing the program, which aims to replace France’s Rafale fighters and Germany’s and Spain’s Eurofighters from the 2040s.
Macron criticized defense contractors for what he described as attempts to prioritize corporate interests over cooperation, saying such behaviour undermined efficiency and cohesion. He said he intended to raise the issue again directly with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz in an effort to move the program forward.
FCAS is one of Europe’s most ambitious defense projects, combining a sixth-generation fighter with unmanned systems, sensors and networked combat capabilities.
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