Japan Will Design New Missiles for Next Generation Fighter Jets Developed Together with England-Italy

Japanese fighter jet illustration. (Wikimedia Commons/Toshi Aoki - JP Spotters)

JAKARTA - Japan plans to design a new missile for the next-generation fighter jet it is developing with Britain and Italy, with the aim of equipping them with it when it first enters service in the Land of the Sun in 2035, according to sources familiar with the matter.

A study involving Japan and the UK into what new fighter jets would be suitable for use by the Japanese Air Self-Defense Forces showed that domestically made air-to-air missiles would initially guarantee better performance at lower costs than air-to-air air Meteor made in Europe, according to the source, reported by Kyodo News, September 5.

But in the future, Japan may consider equipping its new fighters with missiles used on British and Italian fighters to increase their capabilities, the source said.

The launch of the joint fighter jet project was announced last December by the leaders of Japan and both NATO members amid rising global security tensions, including Russia's invasion of Ukraine and China's increasing military power.

This is the first time Japan has been involved in developing defense equipment with a country other than the United States.

Currently, the three countries are working on the basic design of the aircraft body and engine details.

To simplify the development process, they held talks to establish a body to implement decisions made by the three countries' defense authorities.

Japan plans to deploy the new fighter jets as successors to around 90 aging F-2 ASDF fighters that will start to be retired in 2035, and a total of around 240 Eurofighter jets in Britain and Italy will be replaced, according to Japan's Ministry of Defense.

Meanwhile, the Meteor missile, developed by six European countries including Britain and Italy, will be used on the Eurofighter and other aircraft, and is also likely to be a candidate for use on new fighter jets in both countries.

Meanwhile, for the electronic devices that will be installed on the new fighter aircraft, the ASDF C-2 transport aircraft will be modified to carry out flight tests.

Apart from that, studies on artificial intelligence will also be promoted to develop drones, to help fighter jet operations.