First GCAP contract marks milestone for Edgewing, while UK waits on further funding
The Edgewing joint venture was signed in June 2025. (Photo: BAE Systems)
The design and development contract is set to run until the end of June and will now enable the partnership to drive the programme forward as it targets its 2027 demonstrator date.
Edgewing has been awarded its first international contract by the Global Combat Air Programme (GCAP) agency – the body which manages GCAP on behalf of the UK, Italy and Japan.
The £686 million (US$908 million) design and development contract, which runs until June 2026, will go towards design and engineering activities for the sixth-generation aircraft.
This contract signing is a key milestone towards the ongoing development of the programme, allowing the industrial activities to be part of a “fully fledged international programme”, Masami Oka, GCAP agency chief executive, said. An Edgewing spokesperson explained that, in the wake of this first international
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