Saudi Arabia Keenly Eyeing an Entry into the Tri-Nation 6th Generation GCAP Fighter Program

Saudi Arabia has been keenly eyeing for an entry into the tri-nation Global Combat Aircraft Program aimed at developing a 6th generation fighter jet aircraft program as revealed at the WDS Show 2024. GCAP is a joint development program being pursued collaboratively by the United Kingdom, Italy and Japan and aims to get the aircraft airborne by the mid to late 2030s. Further, the program is being developed in parallel to the European/Franco-German FCAS 6th generation fighter jet aircraft program looking at a similar timeline for the Initial Operational Capability (IOC). Saudi Arabia has been bullish on defense modernization over the recent years and the country was also in the Top 5 defense spending nations for 2023, as per SIPRI, with Saudi Arabia having increased its defense spending by 18% year-on-year for the year 2023. However, the Arab kingdom's stringent requirement for localization and the need for establishing local industrial capability, as the nation moves towards achieving self-sufficiency in defense capabilities under a long term & carefully calibrated defense policy, could be a major stumbling block in getting to any possible deal under the GCAP program. Saudi Arabia already has been operating 72 4th generation Eurofighter Typhoon jets sold to it by London and Boeing's F-15SAs and is now looking forward to the future aiming at the 6th generation fighter capability. Saudi Arabia is also set to acquire another 48 Typhoons going forward as Germany has just cleared the export deal in January 2024 giving a much needed boost to the Typhoon FAL and upgrade plans for the platform.