Canada becomes first observer nation in UK-Italy-Japan GCAP fighter program

Published Jul 22, 10:12 AM UTC

Canada has become the first country to receive observer nation status in the Global Combat Air Programme (GCAP), a British-Italian-Japanese initiative to develop a sixth-generation fighter jet. The announcement was made on July 21, 2026, by UK Defence Minister Wes Streeting alongside his Japanese, Italian, and Canadian counterparts at Wellington Barracks in London, coinciding with the Farnborough International Airshow. As an observer, Canada gains privileged access to capability development, industrial collaboration, and implementation plans, though without decision-making power. The trinational joint venture Edgewing, comprising BAE Systems, Leonardo, and JAIEC, presented a scale model of the manned GCAP platform at the airshow. Canada's move comes amid strained US relations and a review of its F-35 procurement, potentially limiting F-35 purchases to 30 of the planned 88 aircraft. A GCAP demonstrator is expected to fly by 2027, with service entry planned for 2035.

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