A New Transatlantic Partnership for European CCA

RAF FAIRFORD, UK, July 17. General Atomics is taking a bold step toward rapidly delivering a European Collaborative Combat Aircraft (CCA) — based on a mature US platform, assembled in Europe, with European mission systems — by aligning its independent US and German aerospace affiliates under a teamed operation.

The new aircraft is derived from the US Air Force’s YFQ-42A prototype, currently in ground testing and scheduled for first flight later this summer, designed and built by General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Inc. (GA-ASI) in San Diego, Calif. European mission system customization and manufacturing in Europe will be supported by General Atomics’ German aerospace affiliate, General Atomics Aerotec Systems GmbH (GA-ATS), headquartered in Oberpfaffenhofen, near Munich.

Leveraging the prior investments of these established aerospace companies on both sides of the Atlantic provides a jump start for European uncrewed fighter development and a pathway to meet the speedy acquisition timelines set by European nations. It also provides an established path for further international collaboration efforts and indigenous defense partnerships, based on both companies’ previous successes in global aircraft delivery.

“We’re eager to combine our uncrewed aircraft system expertise with the airborne sensor and weapons system expertise of the European defense industry, starting with our own affiliate GA Aerotec Systems GmbH in Germany,” said GA-ASI CEO Linden Blue. “With a proven CCA design already in production today, these systems will be delivered in significant quantity with high-technology European inputs to build and sustain affordable mass for NATO’s fighter forces.”

GA-ASI is the world’s foremost builder of unmanned aerial systems, delivering more than 1,200 aircraft over three decades and supporting a net fleet operation approaching 9 million flight hours. The company has pioneered three types of unmanned combat jets, including the groundbreaking MQ-20 Avenger® (2009) and the US Air Force’s XQ-67A Off-Board Sensing Station (2024). Its YFQ-42A fighter was rapidly developed from the XQ-67A baseline and is expected to fly only 18 months after its predecessor.

International collaboration is a significant focus for General Atomics. GA-ASI aircraft are flown by the US, the U.K., Spain, France, Italy, Netherlands, Japan, India and many other customers around the world. GA-ASI’s high-value supply chain for UAS extends deeply into these partner nations, where major airframe components, subsystems, and complete sensor payloads are manufactured.

GA-ATS is a German aircraft manufacturing and Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul company. Aircraft have been manufactured and serviced on the company site for more than 40 years. The company conducts MRO on NH-90 helicopters for the German military; builds, sustains, and modifies the Do-228 multi-role aircraft; and performs engine overhaul on the TPE-331-10 turboprop engine, common to both Do-228 and MQ-9A/B unmanned aircraft.

A new Collaborative Combat Aircraft for Europe, leveraging the YFQ-42A baseline, will benefit from these previous successes, Blue explained.

“European nations are essential and irreplaceable allies for the United States and our company,” he said. “We will supply a mature aircraft baseline already well along in its development, and we’ll look forward to German and other European national partnerships to bring these aircraft online in European and NATO air forces as the Continent grows a new generation of highly capable defense systems.”