TECH NEWS

UK pumps £708 million into its future fighter jet

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Tempest cash lands alongside hypersonic target contract and BAE's 'loyal wingman' drone reveal

Britain has found £708 million ($946m) to fund the development of advanced technologies for the Royal Air Force’s next-gen fighter, codenamed Tempest.

Announced to coincide with the Farnborough International Airshow in Hampshire, southwest of London, the news was accompanied by a £20 million ($27m) contract for a hypersonic target used to test air defenses and a “loyal wingman” drone prototype from BAE Systems.

The £708m extends an existing contract with BAE Systems to develop the UK’s Future Combat Air System (FCAS), part of the Global Combat Air Programme (GCAP) - a tri-partite effort between the UK, Italy and Japan. Britain’s codename for the resulting aircraft is Tempest, as previously disclosed.

According to the Ministry of Defence (MoD), the technologies covered by the latest contract include digital engineering capabilities, artificial intelligence and advanced manufacturing support, the latter...

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