The submission phase of the first-ever Financial Support to Third Parties (FSTP) sub-call under the European Defence Fund (EDF)-funded MAJoR project has successfully concluded, attracting strong interest from innovative small and medium-sized companies across Europe.
The MAJoR consortium received more than 200 proposals in their first FSTP sub-call, with over 70% of eligible applicants participating in an EU defence funding programme for the first time. Proposals were received from almost all member states, including Ukraine.
Also known as cascade funding, FSTP is designed to facilitate the participation of smaller stakeholders from EU, Norway and Ukraine by providing simplified access to EU funding and easing their integration into larger collaborative projects. The mechanism enables innovative companies, start-ups, research organisations and other emerging actors to develop solutions to specific technological challenges while creating new opportunities within the European defence ecosystem.
The MAJoR project focuses on modernising defence systems and improving the durability of future platforms through advanced technologies for maintenance, joining and repair of multi-material structures across the air, maritime and land domains.
Through the FSTP mechanism, the MAJoR project aims to select up to 60 innovators to contribute with their specialized technologies and expertise to the targeted innovation challenges within the project, without navigating the full EDF application process. Successful applicants will receive up to €60,000 in funding and participate in a 6-month business development support programme. A total of 3.6 million EUR is reserved for both sub-calls within MAJoR.
“The response to the first-ever FSTP sub-call reflects the strong interest of European innovators to get easy access to cutting-edge European Defence Fund projects contributing to Union’s defence capabilities. This novel way of working between innovators and EDF consortia is the way to go to ensure Europe’s defence technological and industrial base is fit for the challenges of modern warfare, through constant innovation and the accelerated uptake of critical and emerging technologies,” said François Arbault, director of Defence Industrial Programmes at DG DEFIS
A growing role for FSTP under the EDF
The European Defence Fund introduced FSTP in its 2023 Work Programme as a tool to increase the participation of smaller actors in defence innovation. Since then, the mechanism has been progressively refined to optimise its implementation.
A significant step forward has been taken in the EDF Work Programme 2026, where FSTP is available as an optional mechanism across all EDF calls. This provides greater flexibility for consortia and creates additional opportunities for newcomers to engage in collaborative defence research and development activities.
Next steps
Looking ahead, the second MAJoR sub-call and the first sub-call under the BATTLEVERSE project, will take place, offering further opportunities for innovative companies to participate in EDF-funded projects.