A joint venture set to deliver a next-generation fighter jet for Japan, Britain and Italy is expected to be up and running by this summer, top officials from the three core companies involved in the project have told The Japan Times, with the business construct expecting to receive its first contract by the year’s end.
“We are nearing completion of the standard regulatory process, which will then allow us to set up the joint venture,” Herman Claesen — managing director for future combat air systems at Britain’s BAE Systems, one of the three main firms involved — said in an exclusive interview.
Headquartered in the United Kingdom, the new business — which will also include Italy's Leonardo and the Japan Aircraft Industrial Enhancement Co. (JAIEC), a joint venture launched last July between the Society of Japanese Aerospace Companies and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI) — will be responsible for the industrial side of the Global Combat Air Program (GCAP).
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