The British Ministry of Defence announced today that Britain, Japan, and Italy have signed an international treaty to establish a combat air program aimed at developing an advanced fighter aircraft.
The agreement, which Reuters had earlier reported on this month, comes after a year of the three countries initiating their first major collaboration in the defense industries, combining separate efforts from London and Tokyo for next-generation fighter jets.
The parliaments of each country must approve the treaty, which aims to have the fighter aircraft in operation by 2035.
The joint development phase of the program is scheduled to commence in 2025.
British Defence Secretary Grant Shapps stated that the fighter aircraft program “aims to harness next-generation technologies and become one of the world’s most advanced, interoperable, adaptable and connected fighter jets in service globally.”
Shapps met with his Japanese counterpart Minoru Kihara and Italian counterpart Guido Crosetto in Tokyo today.
The British government stated that the supersonic stealth aircraft will feature a radar system capable of providing data ten thousand times more than current systems.
