Berlin announces the end of the Scaf program; Paris deplores the industrial impasse and affirms the need for Franco-German defense cooperation.
The German government told AFP on June 8, 2026, that Federal Chancellor Friedrich Merz and President Emmanuel Macron “agreed to no longer continue the construction of a joint combat aircraft”. Berlin justified this decision by the inability of the companies “to agree on the construction of a common combat aircraft”, adding that it was “not possible to further pressure the companies concerned”, in reference to industrial tensions between Airbus and Dassault.
The Élysée reacted by emphasizing that “the two leaders each regretted the impossibility for industrialists to agree on the continuation of this project” and that “France remains of the opinion that Franco-German cooperation is necessary for our two countries as well as for European partners in the field of defense and security”.
Context and outlook
For months, the Franco-German-Spanish combat aircraft project had been stalled, against a backdrop of German-French tensions and rivalries between Airbus and Dassault. In February, the German chancellor had already openly doubted the future of Scaf.
Launched in 2017 by Emmanuel Macron and Chancellor Angela Merkel, the program was joined by Spain two years later. It aimed to develop a system of systems combining a new piloted aircraft, drones and an innovative digital network, “a combat cloud”. The German government specifies that the defense ministries of the two countries “must formulate a common and contemporary work plan for cooperation in the defense industry, focused on a few realistic and relevant projects”, to be presented at the next Franco-German Council of Ministers in Germany in June.
