Dassault confirms fighter deal with Airbus, urges Berlin support

The head of France’s Dassault Aviation confirmed on Tuesday it had reached a “balanced” deal with Airbus on the future of the FCAS combat jet and urged the German parliament to back Europe’s largest defence project.

Chief Executive Eric Trappier said he had been surprised to learn that Airbus Defence & Space CEO Dirk Hoke was leaving the European group, and praised his record in reaching an agreement following months of “difficult discussions” over FCAS.

Airbus said on Monday that Hoke and another top executive planned to leave in July, triggering an executive shake-up.