Farnborough, SEP announce agreement to support Global Combat Air Programme

On the occasion of the Farnborough International Airshow 2026, the Sovereign Effects Partners (SEP) – made up of MBDA UK, MBDA Italia, Mitsubishi Electric and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries – signed a collaboration agreement, aimed at supporting the Global Combat Air Program (GCAP).

Joint engineering technologies

The new agreement provides an operating model in which SEPs continue to collaborate on a wide range of joint activitieswith the aim of supporting Edgewing in the creation of the main GCAP platform. The activities, we read in a note, also include the provision of specialist consultancy and engineering services, relating to optimization technologies and digital integration of effectors.

The objectives, it is underlined, will be pursued through the use of cutting-edge technologies and processes, to guarantee the best new generation air combat capabilities, while preserving technological and operational sovereignty. The agreement between Sovereign Eeffects Partners is a clear indication of a collaborative approach that leads to acting as a single team in support of the Global Combat Air Programme – across national borders – to ensure that next-generation complex effector capabilities can power the new GCAP platform.

The agreement does not provide for the joint development of the effectors, but rather aligns the respective national approaches on the matter and promotes the digital integration of systems nel GCAP.