The call for ending the long‑running controversy over the Future Combat Air System (FCAS) is gaining strength.
Employees within the German Airbus workforce now refuse to continue working together with their French partner Dassault on the development of a future fighter aircraft. Dassault, together with the German Airbus division headquartered in Bavaria, is the main contractor for the FCAS project, so this split is a critical blow to the effort.
Thomas Pretzl, head of Airbus’s works council for the Defence division, told the “Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung” that it is time to end the “drama with Dassault”. Pretzl argues that Europe must maintain its sovereignty and independence from the United States, and that Germany should not become dependent on a French company for its next fighter jet. He advocates for a fighter built solely, or at least led, by Airbus.
The German Aerospace Industries Association (BDA) and IG Metall also support a “two‑aircraft” approach within the FCAS framework, calling for Germany and France to each develop its own distinct fighter platform. Last week, Airbus chief executive Guillaume Faury countered that, from his perspective, the FCAS remains worthwhile as a single, integrated programme. The divergence in opinion highlights the growing tension over Germany’s future involvement in the joint Franco‑German fighter project.
