The UK Secretary of State for Defence, Ben Wallace MP has confirmed plans for Britain to lead the development of a new flying combat air demonstrator, which will play a critical role in proving the technology and design principles needed to deliver the UK’s Future Combat Air System.
Work is being led by UK sovereign combat air industry leader BAE Systems, working with the Ministry of Defence and a number of suppliers across the UK. This pioneering project will deliver the first flying combat air demonstrator in a generation - designed and developed in the UK. The demonstrator aircraft will fly within the next five years.
The flagship project is part of a suite of novel technologies being developed by Team Tempest. These concepts are designed to demonstrate and test the next generation combat air skills, tools, processes and techniques needed to ensure Tempest, the UK’s Future Combat Air System, achieves in service in 2035.
Team Tempest comprises the expertise of the Ministry of Defence and UK combat air leaders BAE Systems, Leonardo UK, Rolls-Royce and MBDA UK. Launched in 2018, alongside the UK’s Combat Air Strategy, Tempest will play a crucial role in providing long-term defence and security for the UK, while delivering significant economic benefits to the nation, securing high-value skills and careers and contributing to prosperity in many UK regions.
Engineers at BAE Systems across the North of England are leading the design, test, evaluation and build process, bringing together new and novel digital engineering technologies such as synthetic modelling and model-based systems engineering. These innovative design and engineering methods are helping to demonstrate how they will significantly reduce the time it takes to design, deliver and upgrade complex combat aircraft.
The demonstrator will provide evidence for the critical technologies, methods and tools, which will be used on the core platform. As part of the broader activity involved in developing Tempest, the demonstrator programme is also helping retain, further develop and stimulate the next generation of skills and expertise required to deliver this ambitious programme.
Tempest was launched in 2018, in response to the UK’s Combat Air Strategy, which set out an ambitious vision for the future. It outlined the importance of the UK’s sovereign combat air sector in ensuring that the UK retains choice in how it meets its defence and security capability needs and initiated the programme to deliver the successor capability to Typhoon.
L3Harris Technologies has successfully conducted the first flight of its all-digital electronic warfare (EW) suite, Viper Shield, on a single-seat…
Princess Anne, the United Kingdom’s Princess Royal, has officially opened a new electro-optics facility at Thermoteknix, a company based in…
The French Defence Procurement Agency (Direction Générale de l'Armement / DGA) has entered into a 24-month contract with Airbus Defence…
In December 2024, Integrated Surveillance and Defense (ISD), in partnership with the U.S. Naval Air Systems Command (NAVAIR) and Indonesian…
Veridos will once again supply the technology for identifying participants at the Munich Security Conference (MSC), scheduled to take place…
Rheinmetall has secured a major contract to advance the digitalisation of the Bundeswehr’s communication infrastructure. The company, through its subsidiary…
Lufthansa Group has begun the integration of ITA Airways into its network, with several key benefits now available to passengers.…
The Indonesian Air Force (TNI-AU) is set to receive six Rafale fighter jets from France in 2026, Air Chief Marshal…
The Royal New Zealand Air Force (RNZAF) has retired its fleet of C-130H Hercules aircraft after 60 years of service.…
Lockheed Martin has delivered the first F-16 Block 70 fighter jet to Bulgaria, marking a significant advancement in the country’s…
BIRD Aerosystems has received a follow-on order for the company's Aeroshield missile protection system, which includes the SPREOS (Self Protection…
The U.S. Navy has awarded Lockheed Martin a $383 million contract modification to continue the development of the next generation…
Cohort plc, an independent technology group, has completed the acquisition of EM Solutions, an Australian company specialising in satellite communication…
The Royal Thai Navy (RTN) has outlined plans to acquire four new frigates to strengthen its fleet, with preparations underway…
Aselsan, Türkiye’s leading defense company, signed export contracts worth over 1 billion USD in 2024, a record high figure in…
L3Harris Technologies' Chief Financial Officer Ken Bedingfield, 52, took over as President, Aerojet Rocketdyne, effective Monday. He succeeds Ross Niebergall,…
ZeroAvia has reached consensus on the Certification Basis relating to its 600kW electric propulsion system (EPS) with the Federal Aviation…
ASQS, a provider of integrated safety and quality management software for the aviation industry, has appointed Florian Lis-Srajer as Deputy…
As Tehran and Moscow continue military cooperation, Iran has acquired advanced Sukhoi-35 fighter jets from Russia to bolster its military…
Israeli company Smartshooter has unveiled its latest counter-UAS (C-UAS) solution: Smash Dome. The lightweight, portable, and adaptable solution supports both…
The Israeli ministry of defence is evacuating a new shopping list submitted by Morocco. Israeli defence sources said that the…
Sentrycs has introduced HORIZON, an AI-driven counter-drone system designed to detect a wide range of DIY drones, including those that…
Terma has signed a contract with Swiss aerospace and telecommunications company SWISSto12 to supply key equipment for the HummingSat project,…
The first of the two Airbus-built new generation SpainSat satellites, SpainSat NG-I, has been successfully launched on a Falcon 9…
Embraer has begun accepting applications for its Social Tech Careers programme, a free technology training initiative designed for women and…
A renaming ceremony was held at Fincantieri’s Muggiano shipyard on Wednesday (Jan. 29) for two Multipurpose Combat Ships / Pattugliatore…
Switzerland-based JEKTA, the manufacturer of the zero-emissions PHA-ZE 100 amphibious aircraft, has formed two new strategic partnerships to enhance its…
The Hungarian Ministry of Defence and EDGE, a prominent advanced technology and defence group, have signed a letter of intent…
Boom Supersonic has announced the successful first supersonic flight of the company's XB-1 demonstrator aircraft at Mojave Air & Space…
BlackSky Technology Inc. has signed a seven-year contract worth over $100 million with a long-term strategic partner in the international…
Headquartered in Singapore with reporters spread across all major regions, GBP Aerospace & Defence is a leading media house that publishes three publications that serve the aerospace and defence sector - Asian Defence Technology, Asian Airlines & Aerospace and Daily News. Known industry-wide for quality journalism, GBP Aerospace & Defence is present at more international tradeshows and exhibitions than any other competing publication in the region.
For over three decades, our award-winning team of reporters has been producing top-notch content to help readers stay abreast of the latest developements in the field of commercial aviation, MRO, defence, and Space.
Copyright 2024. GBP. All Rights Reserved.
Home Defence & Security Space Commercial Aviation Maintence Repair & Overhaul Daily News Events About Us
2025 GBP all rights reserved.