Christina Mackenzie, Breaking Defense:
After two false alarms in as many weeks, Dassault Aviation and Airbus have finally reached an industrial agreement for the study phase of the Future Combat Aircraft System (SCAF), removing the blockage that brought the program to a standstill in summer 2021.
The announcement was revealed by Le Figaro, a conservative daily newspaper owned by the Dassault Group, on Dec. 1. Eric Trappier, CEO of Dassault Aviation, called the agreement “a win-win situation for all parties involved.” That same day, French Minister for the Armed Forces Sébastien Lecornu tweeted that “this project is a concrete illustration of the cooperation we are conducting at European level on defense and armaments, in which France plays a central role.”.