LUDOVIC MARIN / AFP
Friedrich Merz and Emmanuel Macron, here talking before a meeting on the sidelines of an EU-Western Balkans summit, in Tivat (Montenegro), June 5, 2026.
A completely aborted Franco-German project. Friedrich Merz and Emmanuel Macron agreed to “No longer pursue the construction of a common combat aircraft”AFP learned this Monday June 8 from the German government.
For months, the Franco-German-Spanish combat aircraft project, the SCAF, had been stalled against a backdrop of German-French tensions and between Airbus and Dassault. In February, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz had already openly doubted his future. This time, he is buried permanently.
“The French president and the German chancellor have reached the shared conclusion that the companies (Airbus and Dassault Aviation, Editor’s note) cannot agree on the construction of a common combat aircraft.”indicates the German government. “They recognize this reality. Federal Chancellor Merz therefore suggested to President Macron that he no longer pursue the construction of a joint combat aircraft.he adds.
In the evening, Paris regretted “the impossibility for industrialists to agree on continuation” of the project. Emmanuel Macron and Friedrich Merz “discussed at length and often about ways to advance this important project for European defenseâ€according to a source at the Élysée. “They each regretted the impossibility for industrialists to agree on the continuation of this project. The German authorities considered that it was not possible to put further pressure on the companies concerned.that is to say Dassault Aviation which represents France and Airbus acting on behalf of Germany and Spain, concludes this source.
Spain joined the project in 2019
Launched in 2017 by Emmanuel Macron and Chancellor Angela Merkel, joined by Spain two years later, the SCAF is a system which includes not only an aircraft but also drones linked together by an innovative digital communication system, “A cloud of combat”.
The SCAF aimed to replace the Rafale in France and the Eurofighter in Germany and Spain by 2040, with the aim of strengthening the strategic autonomy of the European continent, recalls The World.
According to the German government, “the real core of FCAS must be continued as a European system of systemsâ€. “It’s like the nervous system that connects planes, drones and other components to form an integrated whole.”he adds.
He specifies that the French and German Defense Ministries “must formulate a common and contemporary work plan for defense industry cooperation, focused on a few realistic and relevant projectsâ€during the Franco-German council of ministers in Germany in June.
