A Mitsubishi Heavy Industries factory is expected to be the Japan centre for the development and assembly of the next-generation fighter jet to be produced by Japan, Britain and Italy, sources close to the matter said on Saturday.

The three members of the trilateral Global Combat Air Program are discussing the roles each will play in the design and manufacture of the jet, with Britain to set up its centre in Warton and Italy in Turin, according to the sources.

The Japanese centre will be set up at Mitsubishi Heavy’s Komaki South plant in Aichi Prefecture, central Japan, by the end of this year, the sources said, adding that British engineers are already working on the aircraft’s design at the plant.

Mitsubishi Heavy has positioned the next-generation fighter jet development as a core business after it discontinued the development of Japan’s first-ever domestic passenger jet, the Mitsubishi Regional Jet.

The three countries agreed to launch the programme in 2022 to start deploying the fighter jet in 2035, amid an increasingly tense global security environment. Canada’s participation as the first observer in the programme was announced on Tuesday, while some other nations including Germany and Australia have expressed an interest to join.