France strikes contract for next phase of FCAS jet with Dassault Aviation, Airbus, Indra and Eumet

France has struck a contract for the next-stage development of the FCAS European fighter jet programme with the companies Dassault Aviation, Airbus , Indra and Eumet, the French Armed Forces Ministry said on Thursday.

The Future Combat Air System (FCAS), first announced in 2017 by French President Emmanuel Macron and then German Chancellor Angela Merkel, is designed to replace the Eurofighter and Dassault's Rafale with a combination of manned and unmanned aircraft from 2040.