Saab, Airbus in Talks to Collaborate on Uncrewed Combat Aircraft
European defense giants Saab and Airbus are in talks to collaborate on unmanned combat aircraft technology to support piloted fighter jets, similar to the US Air Force’s Collaborative Combat Aircraft (CCA).
The companies’ senior executives revealed the development to Reuters in separate interviews, with industry sources saying that if the partnership on a “loyal wingman” drone proves successful, it could launch further cooperation on European-made air defense capabilities.
Additionally, the partnership could address issues that may arise in case the troubled Future Combat Air System (FCAS) program — under development by Airbus, Dassault Aviation, and Indra Sistemas aimed at ensuring Europe’s military autonomy and reducing reliance on US technology — gets scrapped.
Saab CEO Micael Johansson said the company already works closely with Airbus, noting that its Arexis electronic warfare system is installed on German Eurofighters produced by Airbus.
He added that the two firms have held talks about potential cooperation on unmanned systems that could complement their existing fighter aircraft, while Saab also continues discussions with other defense industry partners.
Airbus CEO Guillaume Faury echoed this, commenting that the company sees “good perspectives to continue to work with them on unmanned – that’s something that we are discussing with them, which is unrelated to FCAS.”
“We’ll see what the programme will look like in the future. But today, the discussions we’re having are directly between Airbus and Saab, unrelated to other problems,” Faury said.
Loyal Wingmen for Europe
In 2024, Airbus announced it was developing a manned–unmanned teaming (MUM-T) capability for the Eurofighter Typhoon and unveiled its “Wingman” fighter drone concept, designed to fly alongside crewed aircraft and perform multiple mission roles.
A year later, it partnered with US-based Kratos to propose the XQ-58A Valkyrie combat drone to the German Air Force, aiming to introduce the system by 2029 and use it for MUM-T training.
Similar collaborations have emerged to offer CCA platforms to European forces, including partnerships between Anduril and Rheinmetall, and between General Dynamics and German affiliate General Atomics Aerotec Systems.
