German Chancellor Friedrich Merz has tasked defense manager Frank Haun with a last‑ditch effort to revive the faltering German‑French joint fighter‑jet project. According to “Der Spiegel”, Merz asked the longtime head of armored‑vehicle maker Krauss‑Maffei Wegmann (KMW) to act as one of two mediators and try to settle the dispute between French aircraft manufacturer Dassault and Airbus’s military division by proposing a new compromise for the next steps.
In recent months, Merz has repeatedly urged French President Emmanuel Macron to decide the future of the high‑profile German‑French venture. Berlin and Paris have been debating whether to continue the joint development of the “Future Combat Air System” better known by its abbreviation FCAS.
Haun is seen as one of Germany’s most experienced defense managers. His background-particularly his role in merging KMW with the French company Nexter-makes him an ideal candidate, in the eyes of the German government, to get the FCAS back on track or at least guide the project toward a revision that does not look like a total collapse. In defense circles, Haun’s experience with the German‑French tank merger is said to have “schooled” him unlike anyone else.
Macron has now appointed similarly seasoned defense expert Laurent Collet‑Billon to the rescue mission. The former head of France’s Directorate General for Armaments (DGA) knows Haun well. His key involvement in the Nexter‑KMW fusion on the side of the French procurement authority and his oversight of the joint Airbus A400M transport‑aircraft project-originally plagued by disputes and setbacks-further underscore his suitability for the task.
