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.
