Berlin, Paris discuss scrapping plan to jointly build fighter jet, FT reports

(Reuters) -Germany and France are discussing downsizing their 100 billion euro ($115.99 billion) flagship air defence project by dropping plans to jointly build a fighter jet and focusing on a command and control system, the Financial Times reported on Monday.

The FT, which said the partners could focus on developing the “combat cloud” control system, cited officials in both countries.

People familiar with the matter told Reuters last week that France, Germany and third partner Spain were set to resume high-level talks on the next phase of the project, known as FCAS, or its French acronym SCAF, after delays caused by the recent political crisis in France.

German Defence Minister Boris Pistorius is due to meet his French counterpart, Catherine Vautrin, in Paris on Monday, two of the sources said at the time.

Berlin has previously blamed French industry for blocking the programme's next phase by demanding sole leadership of the project, in a coded reference to Dassault Aviation <AM.PA>.

The German defence ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Reuters could not immediately verify the FT report.  

($1 = 0.8621 euros)

(Reporting by Disha Mishra in Bengaluru; Ludwig Burger in Frankfurt; Editing by Himani Sarkar and Friederike Heine)