It took four years for the FCAS partner countries to agree on the construction of the first prototype. Yesterday, May 18, portal defensenews.com he reported that France, Spain and Germany have agreed on the transition of the development of a new generation fighter to levels 1B and 2.
After several months of difficult negotiations, the parties agreed to finance the next stage of the work. They will include phase 1B-the creation of a technology demonstrator (one aircraft instead of the previously discussed two), as well as the construction of a prototype fighter in phase 2, which should take to the skies by 2027.
Mock-up of the FCAS fighter
Image source: flightglobal.com
At the same time, France and Germany provided different data on the cost of the work. So, the French Defense Ministry indicated that the development phases 1B and 2 will cost €3.5 billion, which will be paid in equal parts by all project participants. The German Defense Ministry announced that at this stage of the work, the costs of the German side will amount to more than €4 billion.
The FCAS should be the European fighter of the future. At the same time, it is known that the UK is conducting similar work with the assistance of Sweden and Italy. In addition, the stealth fighter is planned to be developed in Turkey.
