The full-scale mockup of the pan-European Next Generation Fighter (NGF) outside Hall 2A at the Paris Airshow is the same one unveiled here four years ago. Does that signify a lack of progress? Some would say yes, after all the subsequent controversy about design leadership and who does what. But that issue got settled late last year, with Dassault confirmed as design leader rather than Airbus and various other accommodations involving Indra, MTU, Safran, and Thales also agreed.
The NGF is part of a Système de Combat Aérien du Futur (SCAF)—or Future Combat Air System (FCAS) in English. France, Germany, and Spain serve as the partner countries. This FCAS must not be confused with the other FCAS led by the UK and supported by Italy and Japan, of which Tempest is the combat aircraft element. Meanwhile, across the Atlantic, the U.S. works on its own FCAS, the Next-Generation Air Dominance (NGAD) project.
