DEFRA NGCAT — Next Generation Combat Aircraft Technologies
Funds Belgian industrial companies developing next-generation combat aircraft and fighter-jet technologies under the NGWS/FCAS programme.
⚠ This may reflect a past cycle — verify the current call on the funder's site.
BELSPO manages the Defence-related Research Action (DEFRA) on behalf of Belgium's Ministry of Defence and Royal Higher Institute for Defence (RHID). The NGCAT (Next Generation Combat Aircraft Technologies) call is a thematic call under DEFRA targeting Belgian industrial stakeholders to develop technologies relevant to next-generation air combat capabilities, specifically contributing to the German-French-Spanish NGWS/FCAS programme. The budget is split across four technology themes (the total pool was not stated in the available PDF source). There is no set maximum per project. Contracts run 24 to 30 months and come directly from the Ministry of Defence.
Unlike the annual open DEFRA calls, the NGCAT call explicitly targets the Belgian Defence Technological and Industrial Base (BDTIB) — industrial companies and their academic collaborators — to deepen knowledge in fighter jet technologies. Projects must include Belgian industrial stakeholders as the primary beneficiary in collaboration with academic institutions and small innovative companies.
The call used two-phase submission: an Expression of Interest (deadline 7 June 2024) and a full proposal (deadline 25 September 2024). Final selections were made by the RHID Board of Directors on 20 February 2025, with contracts starting March 2025. This call is now closed with all contracts underway.
Applications were submitted through a dedicated NGCAT portal (ngcat.belspo.be). Companies must be registered and operating in Belgium. Personnel must be EU/EFTA/NATO nationals. IP and classification rules follow the DEFRA General Conditions.
Next-generation combat aircraft technologies across four themes: advanced aircraft structures and subsystems, propulsion for next-gen fighters, communications/cyber/avionics/embedded sensors for air combat, and transversal enabling technologies (AI, advanced materials, IoT, additive manufacturing, digital twins, stealth, electro-mechanical actuators, variable cycle engines, military HMI).
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