BAE Systems held early talks with Japanese defense companies aiming to co-develop drones to accompany fighter jets.

The British team of engineers leading the PHASA-35 unmanned aircraft project, developed by BAE Systems, has achieved a significant milestone in the advancement of stratospheric technology.

Britain's Royal Air Force has been using Tornado jets as bombers for decades and is already building a fleet of new Typhoons, but BAE hopes to supplement those forces with a powerful new drone.