Concept art of the British, Italian, Japanese Global Combat Air Programme (GCAP) next generation fighter jet. (Edgewing)
MELBOURNE — During a meeting with his Japanese counterpart in Tokyo, Canada’s defense minister has said that Ottawa is “interested in learning more about” the Global Combat Air Programme (GCAP) next-generation fighter.
David McGuinty told media that he had discussed the programme during the meeting meeting with Japanese defense minister Shinjiro Koizumi, calling it a “promising initiative” in further comments to Reuters.
“We are interested in learning more about it. I’ll take it back to my team and see what it looks like,” he told the news outlet.
The comments mark the first occasion a senior Canadian official has spoken publicly about the country’s interest in GCAP, a multinational effort between Italy, Japan and the United Kingdom that envisions a sixth-generation fighter jet as well as collaborative combat drones and high-tech data sharing. The remarks also come as Canada is considering a split buy of existing airframes for its next fighter amid tensions with the US.
