0702 GMT - The European fighter jet program FCAS--involving Dassault Aviation, Thales, Safran, Hensoldt, MTU Aero and Airbus--is highly likely to be scrapped, Jefferies analysts Chloe Lemarie and Ben Brown say. The project is an initiative bringing together France, Germany and Spain, but is heavily delayed by disagreements over workload distribution. On Friday, Bloomberg reported that Germany is exploring options to move ahead with development of the fighter without France. If the project falls apart, the French companies should be able to move forward with upgrades to the existing Rafale jet to satisfy France's need for a sixth-generation fighter aircraft, the analysts say. Germany's options are far less clear, because joining rival program GCAP--whose members are the U.K.'s BAE Systems, Italian defense giant Leonardo and an aircraft unit of Japan's Mitsubishi Heavy Industries--appears off the table, they add. (cristina.gallardo@wsj.com)

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

September 22, 2025 03:02 ET (07:02 GMT)

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