Senior executives from Boeing and Saab have indicated that their companies are taking a close look at the newly-unveiled Tempest fighter program and are interested in participating.

Saab AB, maker of the Gripen warplane, said it’s interested in joining a U.K.-led project to develop a cutting-edge combat aircraft that would be a mainstay of defence programs in two decades time. Saab’s CEO Hakan Buskhe said “We’re much more intensive in discussion with the Brits than the other consortium,” Buskhe said in a phone briefing. “It looks very promising, and I think we jointly can do good things together.” BAE once held a 35 percent stake in Saab and the pair cooperated in a venture to help market the Gripen.

Leanne Caret, chief executive of Boeing Defence, Space & Security, told Reuters in an interview at the Farnborough Airshow this week that Boeing was watching the situation but that it was premature to make more definitive statements. “They are still going through own defence reviews and understanding where they’re going,” she said. “If there is an opportunity where the Boeing Company can participate and play, we will be absolutely honoured and thrilled to be part of that journey,” she added.