Latex AMS align / Align multiple "=", too much space

This should work:

\begin{alignat}{2}
  A &= B & &=  C \\
  D &= E & &=  F
\end{alignat}

From ams guide:

A variant environment alignat allows the horizontal space between equations to be explicitly specified. This environment takes one argument, the number of “equation columns”: count the maximum number of &s in any row, add 1 and divide by 2.

Its not exactly intended for what you are trying to do, but since align insists on adding space... The idea behind align is:

l&=r   &   l&=r \\
l&=r   &   l&=r

One '&' per function, and a '&' between functions.

I would hope there is a better solution though.

(6½ to 8 years later)

What about using array with a custom separator?

\begin{array}{r@{\ }c@{\ }l}
A &= B &= C \\
D &= E &= F
\end{array}