The head of Dassault Aviation EURONEXT:AM said on Wednesday he hoped to receive a development contract for the planemakeer's upcoming Rafale F5 fighter version by the end of the year.
"We are studying the F5 with our partners now, which should entail a development contract by the end of the year, if we want to maintain our schedule," CEO Eric Trappier said.
Trappier was speaking to a French Senate panel in his first formal comments since Germany and France last month scrapped a project to build a new-generation fighter following industrial disputes between Dassault and its main partner Airbus EURONEXT:AIR.