EU approves British, Italian, Japanese joint venture for combat aircraft

BRUSSELS (Reuters) -The European Union said on Monday it had approved a joint venture between BAE Systems (Holdings) Limited, Japan Aircraft Industrial Enhancement Co Ltd and Leonardo S.p.A., which will be the prime contractor and lead systems integrator for the Global Combat Air Programme.

The joint venture will develop a sixth-generation combat aircraft for use by the governments of Italy, the United Kingdom and Japan, with the potential for other sales to other jurisdictions or government buyers in the future, the European Commission said.

The companies have said they would each hold a 33.3% share and that the new firm would be headquartered in Britain and its first CEO would be from Italy.

Separately, France, Germany and Spain are working on their own next-generation fighter project, raising concerns from some in the industry who wonder if Europe can sustain two decades-long programmes.

(Reporting by Makini Brice; Editing by Hugh Lawson)