Japan plans to design a new air-to-air missile for the next-generation GCAP fighter aircraft, which it is developing with the United Kingdom and Italy.
A source familiar with the matter told Kyodo News that a study by the Japanese government showed that a Japanese-made air-to-air missile would initially guarantee better performance at a lower cost than the Meteor air-to-air missile used by its partners in the sixth-generation Global Combat Air Program (GCAP) fighter program.
In the future, and as an interim measure, Japan may consider equipping its new fighters with Meteor missiles like those used on British and Italian Eurofighter Typhoon fighters to enhance their capabilities, the source said.
The JNAAM project, at the beginning of it all
The current partnership between Japan, the United Kingdom and Italy on the GCAP program has been forged for some years on the basis of joint development programs, one of the precursors being the Joint New Air-to-Air Missile (JNAAM), which seeks to develop an air-to-air missile that integrates the Meteor ramjet engine with the advanced AESA active radar seeker developed by Mitsubishi Electric Corporation for the Japanese national medium-range AAM4 missile.
Then came the agreement with Rolls Royce for the joint development of the sixth-generation engines that would equip the future Mitsubishi F-3 and Tempest.
The JAGUAR project followed, aimed at developing a new type of universal radio frequency sensor technology, which would allow better detection of future threats, originating from the air, land or sea, their rapid and accurate localization, while conducting electronic attacks against enemy surveillance systems.
It is on these pillars of joint development that the GCAP alliance was forged for the future sixth-generation fighter that is to replace some 90 aging Mitsubishi F-2 fighters of the Japan Air Self-Defense Force (JASDF) and 240 Eurofighter fighters of Great Britain and Italy, starting in 2035.
