Known as the EFA, it was to be the latest multinational effort from Britain, Germany, and Italy. Planned to embody the latest maneuver technologies, avionics, and weapons, the EFA's future looks bleak given the current political situation. The partner countries have squabbled over design criteria and the collapse of the Soviet Union has caused many to believe that the expense of the EFA program is no longer worth bearing. If development continues (which seems unlikely) the EFA could enter service around the year 2000 and compete for export sales with the French Rafale.
