Three team for Tempest combat aircraft company

BAE Systems, Leonardo, and JAIEC in Japan are to form a joint venture to develop and build the next generation Global Combat Air Programme (GCAP) called Tempest.

The £12bn GCAP programme has been agreed by the UK, Italian and Japanese governments, and the joint venture will be headquartered in the UK in London.

The timeframe for the venture is tight, with a 2035 aircraft in-service date. The programme’s concept and assessment phase is expected to complete in 2025. It will be followed by a design development phase during which the first flight of a demonstrator aircraft is due to take place in 2027.

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The Tempest demonstrator passed its Critical Design Review in May 2024 and is reported to be on track for its maiden flight, but this means developing the core platform in half the time taken for the previous Typhoon and F-35 fighter aircraft.

BAE Systems, Leonardo, and the Japan Aircraft Industrial Enhancement Co (JAIEC), set up by Mitsubishi Heavy Industries in July 2024, will each hold a 33.3% shareholding in the new joint venture.

Over 4000 are working on the Tempest project in the UK, including Rolls Royce for the engines, Leonardo UK and Italy for the sensors and MDBA in the UK and Italy for the missile systems as well as Avio Aero and the ELT Group in Italy and IHI and Mitsubishi Electric in Japan.

“This agreement is a culmination of many months working together with our industry partners and is testament to the hard work of everyone involved in this strategically important programme. The new business will bring together the significant strengths and expertise of the companies involved to create an innovative organisation that will lead the way in developing a next generation combat air system, creating long-term, high value and skilled jobs across the partner nations for decades to come,” said Charles Woodburn, Chief Executive, BAE Systems

“This agreement is the result of an intensive journey made possible by pooling our mutual and shared experiences. This partnership not only enhances our technological capabilities but also reinforces our commitment to global security and innovation. Today, we are paving the way for the development of a new era in aircraft systems and multi-domain scenarios, fostering long-term sustainable growth for the economies of the involved countries,” said Roberto Cingolani, Chief Executive Officer and General Manager at Leonardo in Italy.

“As we now embark upon the exciting and important journey towards the success of GCAP, I acknowledge that the way might not always be simple and straightforward. However, I believe that through continuing the strong spirit of trilateral cooperation and collaboration that we have fostered up to this point, we will not only deliver the GCAP on time but also at a level that exceeds all of our expectations,” said Kimito Nakae, President, JAIEC