
TOKYO -- The next-generation fighter jet planned by Japan, the U.K. and Italy may be developed through a joint venture and built in more than one country, according to officials at Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI), one of the prime contractors for the program.
The three countries announced this month that they will jointly develop a sixth-generation fighter jet by 2035 in an ambitious move aimed at expanding Japan's security partnership beyond the U.S., its treaty ally, and developing the ability to source its own defense equipment.