GCAP Trinational Fighter Jet Program Takes Off With £4.6B Contract
U.K., Italy and Japan stealth aircraft program under the Edgewing joint venture are driving the next phase of key design and engineering activities for GCAP, featuring one of the largest composite parts ever built for a British military aircraft.
GCAP aircraft render. Source | EdgeWing
Edgewing, a new joint venture (JV) uniting the expertise of BAE Systems (London, U.K.), Leonardo (Rome, Italy) and Japan Aircraft Industrial Enhancement Co. Ltd. (Tokyo) for delivery of the Global Combat Air Programme (GCAP), has been awarded its second joint international contract, following an initial £686 million contract that was placed in April 2026. The additional £4.6 billion will enable completion of the advanced concept and assessment phase of the next-gen fighter aircraft program and further joint detailed design and development.
The 18-month contract has been awarded by the GCAP Agency, which manages GCAP on behalf of the U.K., Italian and Japanese governments, to Edgewing, the trinational prime contractor and design authority for the GCAP aircraft.
The GCAP has ties to the British-designed and developed one-off fighter jet, the Experimental Aircraft Program (EAP), flown in 1986. GCAP was launched in 2022 with the goal to deliver an innovative stealth fighter equipped with cutting-edge technologies, supporting sovereign industries across partner nations. According to journalist Tim Robinson FRAeS, who had the chance to see the demonstrator in mid-June, the latest rending of the GCAP is demonstrating a variety of “pioneering technologies,” in addition to wings spanning ≈12-14 feet — “one of the largest composite parts ever built for a military aircraft in the U.K.,” Robinson says. Three wings are being built, one of them primarily for structural testing.
Wider delivery is supported by tri-national industrial collaborations bringing together leading Italian, Japanese and U.K. companies. This includes the GCAP Electronics Evolution (G2E) consortium, developing GCAP’s advanced sensing and communications system, and the power and propulsion consortium, working to equip the GCAP aircraft with extended range and persistence.
Partners are anticipating an end of 2027 timeline for the GCAP’s flight, says Robinson. Delivers are expected for 2035.
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