The UK government has drawn together representatives from the across the nation's defence aerospace industry to engage on the Tempest future fighter and other aspects of the wider Future Combat Air System (FCAS).

The event, held at Farnborough on 19 March, was the first time that companies outside of the four current Team Tempest participants of BAE Systems, Leonardo UK, MBDA, and Rolls-Royce had been invited to collaborate on the concepts, technologies, and capabilities that should lead to an operational combat aircraft entering service with the Royal Air Force (RAF) in the 2030s. The Tempest will be part of wider FCAS that will include swarming unmanned aircraft and other capabilities.

With the Minister for Defence Procurement, Stuart Andrew, launching the event, some 300 delegates including subject matter experts (SMEs) and technology-led organisations were in attendance "to build connections and take part in a series of briefings outlining the capabilities and skills needed to shape the future of Combat Air System delivery in the UK", BAE Systems said.

The Tempest programme is a fundamental pillar of the Ministry of Defence's (MoD's) Combat Air Strategy announced in February last year, with GBP2 billion (USD2.65 billion) initial investment in the project announced at the 2018 Farnborough Air Show.

According to BAE Systems, which along with its three industrial partners is also working with the RAF Rapid Capabilities Office, Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (Dstl), and Defence Equipment and Support (DE&S) on the Tempest project, the industry event was followed by a classified briefing.

"The event today has set into motion a series of discussions to develop the right capabilities, the right technologies, and the right level of agility and collaborative working to meet the demands of this future acquisition programme, delivering a prosperous and sustainable sector," BAE Systems noted, although neither it nor the UK government disclosed if or when this industry day might result in contracts.

Ozair wrote:

The UK seems to be doing all the right things to get industry involved although no involvement yet with foreign companies and countries.

UK holds Team Tempest industry day

The UK government has drawn together representatives from the across the nation's defence aerospace industry to engage on the Tempest future fighter and other aspects of the wider Future Combat Air System (FCAS).

The event, held at Farnborough on 19 March, was the first time that companies outside of the four current Team Tempest participants of BAE Systems, Leonardo UK, MBDA, and Rolls-Royce had been invited to collaborate on the concepts, technologies, and capabilities that should lead to an operational combat aircraft entering service with the Royal Air Force (RAF) in the 2030s. The Tempest will be part of wider FCAS that will include swarming unmanned aircraft and other capabilities.

With the Minister for Defence Procurement, Stuart Andrew, launching the event, some 300 delegates including subject matter experts (SMEs) and technology-led organisations were in attendance "to build connections and take part in a series of briefings outlining the capabilities and skills needed to shape the future of Combat Air System delivery in the UK", BAE Systems said.

The Tempest programme is a fundamental pillar of the Ministry of Defence's (MoD's) Combat Air Strategy announced in February last year, with GBP2 billion (USD2.65 billion) initial investment in the project announced at the 2018 Farnborough Air Show.

According to BAE Systems, which along with its three industrial partners is also working with the RAF Rapid Capabilities Office, Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (Dstl), and Defence Equipment and Support (DE&S) on the Tempest project, the industry event was followed by a classified briefing.

"The event today has set into motion a series of discussions to develop the right capabilities, the right technologies, and the right level of agility and collaborative working to meet the demands of this future acquisition programme, delivering a prosperous and sustainable sector," BAE Systems noted, although neither it nor the UK government disclosed if or when this industry day might result in contracts.

https://www.janes.com/article/87318/uk- ... dustry-day

A leading Italian think tank is pressuring the country to enter Britain’s Tempest fighter program as soon as possible and then push for the project to merge with a rival Franco-German effort.

The proposal by the IAI think tank in Rome comes as the Italian government deliberates over what air power it will need in the 2030s, around the time when the Tempest could take to the skies.

The British program was announced last year as France and Germany started work on their own Future Combat Air System, raising the prospect of European neighbors working, yet again, on rival aircraft, following parallel developments of the Eurofighter, Rafale and Gripen.

To avoid that, IAI stated in a paper published this week, the Tempest project, with Italy on board, “should in the midterm merge with the Franco-German project for the benefit of European defence and strategic autonomy.”

The industrial team involved in the Tempest program already includes Italy’s Leonardo, thanks to its large-scale operation in the U.K., and an Italian junior defense minister has called for Rome to become a national partner on the fighter project, although wariness over defense spending in Rome means there’s been no official commitment.


Other potential national partners include Sweden and Holland, with 2035 as a possible initial operating capability goal.

“Italy will soon have to choose one of these two sides, and a timely decision is critical in order to enable Rome to influence the crucial, initial steps of a FCAS cooperative project,” IAI warned.

The paper listed reasons why Italy would find a solid partner in the U.K., citing the fact that both have flown the Tornado and Eurofighter and are now introducing the F-35. Using a fifth-generation fighter gives “both countries a basis from which to look to the 6th-generation in military and industrial terms,” the paper said.

The authors said Italy could take a stronger role in Tempest than it would in the Franco-German project, placing Rome in a key position if the programs merged.

“In contrast, if Rome were to accept an ancillary position in the Franco–German project, it would probably be the weaker partner, whose interests could be sacrificed to make room for a future marriage with London," the paper stated.

The risk that the U.K. is about to leave the European Union without a trade deal, as Brexit negotiations falter, was a risk that did not outweigh the advantages, the paper argued.

Paris would only consider a request to enter FCAS “after the military requirements had been set up and the industrial architecture designed, with little room to accommodate Italian requests. In other words, for Italy, achieving a satisfactory compromise with Paris and joining the Franco–German project is not impossible, but it is much more difficult and unlikely in comparison with a deal with the UK,” the paper said.

Another Italian think tank, the Centre for International Studies, also put out a paper this week on the two fighter programs, and also urged Italy to join Tempest.

It predicted a difficult relationship between Paris and Berlin, given France’s need to carry nuclear weapons on the future fighter and to build a carrier version — two ambitions Germany does not share.

"Above all, it is difficult not to see in the renewed French-German partnership the willingness to cut back the role of Rome within Europe’s big defense initiatives,” the paper said.

The IAI paper went on to promote the eventual merging of the two programs.

“First, we should enter Tempest as fast as possible,” IAI analyst Michele Nones said. “The idea of merging it with FCAS is now delayed until the end of the technology development phase at the end of the next decade.

“At that point discussions can start; otherwise, if the programs remain separate, neither will have a sufficient market, and we will need to depend on an uncertain level of exports.”

Merging the two programs was also backed this week by Alessandro Profumo, the CEO of Leonardo.

“Tempest will be open to the participation of other countries,” he told Italian daily Il Sole 24 Ore. “I hope the French and Germans will join in."

Elshad wrote:

I think this whole Tempest thing is going to be merged with various other European projects and eventually become the replacement / “next” Eurofighter.

The UK wants to adopt a new partnership arrangement with international participants in its Tempest next-generation combat aircraft programme, in an effort to avoid the rigid workshare model employed during previous joint efforts.

“Nations need to collaborate on the strength of what they bring to a programme, with the desire for industrial and technology gains in there as a consideration, but not the primary driver,” says Sir Simon Bollom, chief executive of the UK’s Defence Equipment and Support (DE&S) organisation.

...

RJMAZ wrote:

I can't see how a supersonic 1000nm aircraft that the UK wants can also operate from an French aircraft carrier.

It will be very difficult for these programs to merge when they have a large size difference. It will also be difficult for all of these programs to be developed separately.

A common shared avionics package is the only option. Even shared engines would be difficult with the size difference. The french design would then be over powered and the larger U.K design underpowered.

The "stubborn French" and "anti-US Germans" will simply build a stealthy aircraft similar in size to the Rafale.

So a medium sized twin engine canard with a larger fuel fraction than the current Euro canards. Replace both the Eurofighter and Rafale with one fighter. It would be very difficult to surpass the F-35.

The F-35 is the stealthy Eurofighter replacement for the U.K. It will be very hard to match the F-35 on price and the U.K will simply buy more F-35's. The U.K will be crazy not to buy F-35 to cover all short term requirements and in the long term use the F-35 for the bulk of the force and join the 6th gen PCA program to satisfy their high end tempest requirement.

The French and Germans will not be allowed full access to the US 6th gen fighter.

RJMAZ wrote:

I never put a number on F-35A's. I do not expect 138 F-35 either. I said F-35 and PCA will make up the entire U.K manned fighter fleet.

There is lots of misreporting on Tempest and Chinese whispers. All the official press release go on and on about a high level partnership. Having a fancy model doesn't mean they intend to make their own 6th gen fighter. Everyone thinks Tempest is a fighter building program but Tempest is a knowledge gaining program.

The U.K mention the workshare model of the F-35 is not what they want. Any Europe project would not be a workshare model and the U.K would be in full tech partnership. So these words are clearly targeted at the US with the PCA program.

More F-35's in the short term and PCA in 2030.

Sweden is set to become the first international partner to join the British “Tempest” sixth-generation fighter program.

An announcement involving the governments and industries of the two nations is expected to be made at the three-day Royal International Air Tattoo (RIAT) event, which begins July 19 at RAF Fairford, according to industry executives.

...

Ozair wrote:

First international partner for the Tempest program will be Sweden according to the below news article. A good option for Sweden to get onto a program that will provide them with a true 5th gen aircraft.

I don’t see too much of a future for the Gripen E with this announcement. I also agree with the comments in the article later on pointing to a similar issue of export controls to what FCAS is facing, with Sweden significantly more adverse to exporting to countries that do not align with their global view. It does provide some interesting knowledge, potential requirements and a different perspective to the future of Tempest if Sweden/SAAB have a decent role in development.

The most important point to note though is that as more partners join both programs it likely prevents them from merging and we will again be in the situation of a European market that probably has one too many fighter aircraft for sale. This will prevent economy of scale and likely limit the ability of FCAS and Tempest to compete with US, Chinese and to a lessor extent Russian future programs.

Sweden to join British ‘Tempest’ next-gen fighter push

Sweden is set to become the first international partner to join the British “Tempest” sixth-generation fighter program.

An announcement involving the governments and industries of the two nations is expected to be made at the three-day Royal International Air Tattoo (RIAT) event, which begins July 19 at RAF Fairford, according to industry executives.

...

https://www.defensenews.com/global/euro ... hter-push/

Sweden has become the first nation to join forces with the UK on its Tempest future combat air system (FCAS) project, with the pair having signed a memorandum of understanding to cooperate on the initiative.

The MoU is the starting point for the countries to analyze the conditions for deeper cooperation on the development of future combat aircraft capabilities, including future development of the JAS 39 Gripen,” the Swedes said.

The UK Ministry of Defence (MoD) has contracted Leonardo to provide a large-body test aircraft as part of the Team Tempest initiative.

Announced at the Royal International Air Tattoo (RIAT) at Royal Air Force (RAF) Fairford in Gloucestershire on 19 July, the contract will see the company provide a modified Boeing 757 testbed aircraft to test systems and sensors destined for the future Tempest fighter, as well as supporting capability enhancements for the current Eurofighter Typhoon and Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning.

The MoD did not provide a contract value, but noted that the testbed aircraft will come into service in the early 2020s.

Leonardo is one of four primary industrial partners on the Tempest programme that is being developed by the RAF Rapid Capabilities Office, Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (Dstl), and Defence Equipment and Support (DE&S); the others being BAE Systems, MBDA UK, and Rolls-Royce.

Due to enter service in the early 2030s, the Tempest is being developed "from the inside out", according to the MoD, with the emphasis on the systems and sensors rather than the airframe that will accommodate them.

...

The UK Ministry of Defence (MoD) is taking a flexible approach to development partnerships for its Tempest next-generation fighter programme as it hopes to maintain forward momentum and avoid restrictive frameworks, Simon Bollom, chief executive officer of Defence Equipment and Support (DE&S), told Jane's .

Tempest is in a conceptual and technology assessment stage, and Bollom said the United Kingdom expects to leverage developments under way in sensors, low-observable technology, and more.

In July, UK Defence Secretary Penny Mordaunt and Swedish counterpart Peter Hultqvist signed a memorandum of understanding that "commits both governments to work on a joint combat air development and acquisition programme, including the development of new concepts to meet both nations' future requirements", according to the UK MoD. The agreement was possible due to "common ground identified based on similar future Combat Air requirements, including being optimised for air defence", it added.

...

On Sept. 10, Italy has officially become the latest member of the Tempest Programme, the project to develop a next generation multirole aircraft.

Gen. Nicolò Falsaperna, Italy’s Secretary General of Defense, and Sir Simon Bollom, CEO of Defense Equipment & Support, as National Armaments Directors of Italy and the UK, signed a Declaration of Intents to collaborate in the Tempest program at DSEI (Defense & Security Exhibition International) of Intents to collaborate in the Tempest program.

“The Declaration of Intent commits both Governments to further develop their capabilities in the Combat Air sector. It is the result of a joint Government Feasibility Study, launched following the publication of the UK’s Combat Air Strategy at the Farnborough Air Show in July 2018,” says the Italian MoD press release.

According to the Italian Defense officials, the study came to the conclusion that the UK and Italy are natural partners in the Combat Air sector, also thanks to the collaboration between in the Defense field and in particular between the Italian Air Force and Royal Air Force that employ the same aircraft: both are equipped with the Eurofighter Typhoon and the F-35 (previously, for three decades, also the Tornado fighter bomber). The employment of the same weapons systems has allowed the two air arms to develop a common vision on doctrine, training and grow a similar operational experience: this means that Italy and the UK share objectives and know how that is needed to work on a next generation aircraft. Moreover, the aerospace industries of both nations have been cooperating for 50 years, in the development and support of combat aircraft in the Panavia Tornado and Eurofighter Typhoon program.

...

MBDA in the United Kingdom, in collaboration with its partners in Team Tempest, has unveiled a range of advanced weapon system concepts designed to complement and exploit the technologies that will inform the development of a sixth-generation fighter platform under the UK Ministry of Defence (MoD) Future Combat Air System Technology Initiative.

Team Tempest is a UK government-industry partnership comprising MoD personnel from the Royal Air Force (RAF) Rapid Capabilities Office, the Defence Science and Technology Laboratory, Defence Equipment & Support and industry partners, BAE Systems, Leonardo, MBDA, and Rolls-Royce.

"We are looking at how future weapons concepts and the future platform can work together," Chris Allard, group head of surface attack and future systems at MBDA, told Jane's . "Rather than the more traditional approach, where we integrate weapons after the platform has been designed, we are now looking at how we can design the weapons and the platform together to optimise overall mission effectiveness. Being involved in the development of novel interfaces, bay designs, and integration processes will be a key enabler to the spiral development of complementing effectors in the future," he added.

Working with Leonardo and BAE Systems, MBDA is advancing a hard-kill defensive aid system (HK-DAS) concept as part of the platform's integrated defensive system. Designed to track, target, and intercept incoming missiles, HK-DAS is a compact < 1 m length, 10 kg-class imaging infrared (IIR) hit-to-kill missile, released from launchers integrated within the platform airframe. In keeping with its commonality, modularity, and reuse principle, the company is also considering, as part of the same conceptual family, a scalable Ground Attack Micromissile in the same form factor, but furnished with a small explosive payload to enable a close-air support role from the platform.

In the air-to-air domain, leveraging its current in-service 88 kg class, 166 mm calibre, IR-homing Advanced Short-Range Air-to-Air Missile (ASRAAM) technologies, MBDA is exploring new within-visual-range air-to-air missile (WVRAAM) concepts.

...

Guillaume Faury, the chief executive of Airbus has called for a single European fighter jet programme, merging British and continental European efforts.

Speaking to John Collingridge in an interview in The Sunday Times, Faury said it would make sense to combine Europe’s two next-generation combat aircraft programmes — Tempest, which involves the UK, Italy and Sweden, and the Franco-German Future Combat Air System.

SAS A340 wrote:

Lets these countries involved sit down and have a couple of sessions together and see what they all can contribute with. A Eurofighter/Rafale/Gripen team could probably do pretty good things together I believe

art wrote:

Airbus hoping to combine British Tempest jet project with Franco-German effort

Guillaume Faury, the chief executive of Airbus has called for a single European fighter jet programme, merging British and continental European efforts.

Speaking to John Collingridge in an interview in The Sunday Times, Faury said it would make sense to combine Europe’s two next-generation combat aircraft programmes — Tempest, which involves the UK, Italy and Sweden, and the Franco-German Future Combat Air System.

https://ukdefencejournal.org.uk/news/air/

Not holding my breath for this to happen. Anyone think it could?

art wrote:

Airbus hoping to combine British Tempest jet project with Franco-German effort

Guillaume Faury, the chief executive of Airbus has called for a single European fighter jet programme, merging British and continental European efforts.

Speaking to John Collingridge in an interview in The Sunday Times, Faury said it would make sense to combine Europe’s two next-generation combat aircraft programmes — Tempest, which involves the UK, Italy and Sweden, and the Franco-German Future Combat Air System.

https://ukdefencejournal.org.uk/news/air/

Not holding my breath for this to happen. Anyone think it could?

art wrote:

Tempest Fighter Jet Programme to Accelerate in 2020

Program analysis by partners set for completion by end 2020.

https://www.defense-aerospace.com/artic ... eport.html

PS Link to full article in FT requires registration.

I guess that means the door for Japan to have any input into the design side of the program will be closing soon (should Japan choose to abandon its own project as unaffordable).

Ozair wrote:

I don't agree with de Briganti's note, in contrast to his claim the UK is holding an open hand to join FCAS I think it is the opposite, the UK is forging ahead against what is already the malaise of FCAS. As of today there is confidence and direction being projected from Tempest, the same cannot be said of FCAS.

mxaxai wrote:

TBH a lot about the Tempest is just as unclear, although its PR has been different from FCAS. If you look at corporate PR from Airbus and Dassault, there's a lot of confidence in FCAS. There has been more public political discussion about FCAS but I suspect that this is partially because the main Tempest partner has been busy with other stuff for the past year or two. Italy's role in Tempest is far from clear and Leonardo is an aircraft manufacturer on the same level as Saab. How can all three major partners get a large enough slice of cake? (ofc FCAS has the same issue)

mxaxai wrote:

Tempest is supposed to be a platform "open for other partners" but once the key airframe parameters (payload, range, speed) are defined, the only variable component is the electronics. Not too different from, say, the current Eurofighter arrangement. In fact, Tempest and FCAS will share many systems with the Eurofighter and thus each other. One could argue that new program partners can provide external systems like loyal wingman drones but the same applies to FCAS, which is designed to be a "system of systems".

mxaxai wrote:

Finally, two of the three Tempest partners have an easy way out by dropping the program and ordering more F-35. If you count Japan as a potential partner, that's three out of four. FCAS on the other hand has two of three partners with no other option, France (who will never buy a US fighter jet) and Germany (who is loyal to France).

Leonardo UK has demonstrated new radar receiver/warner technology for the Team Tempest programme.

The new sensor, which is 1/10th the size of a standard system, demonstrated a direction finding performance of four times what is possible with a typical radar warning receiver.

Leonardo UK is one of the four founding members of Team Tempest, which was brought together by the UK Ministry of Defence to develop a next-generation combat air system for the UK and partner nations, Italy and Sweden.

The company is working to develop Tempest’s sensor package and integrate these sensors into the platform’s mission system.

The new radar warning technology is used to sense the radio frequency signals emitted by potentially hostile radars and then use this information for a variety of uses, including warning an operator that an enemy is trying to lock on to their aircraft. The sensors can also support tasks such as intelligence gathering and combat identification.

In future, threat radars are likely to use a range of technologies and software techniques to make it harder to identify their signals, meaning that Tempest’s sensors will need to be sophisticated enough to be able to counter such techniques and flexible enough to be updated in response to new technologies as they emerge on the battlefield.

Rolls-Royce is adapting to the reality that all future vehicles, whether on land, in the air or at sea will have significantly increased levels of electrification to power sensors, communications systems weapons, actuation systems and accessories, as well as the usual array of avionics.

The RAF is planning the world’s first hypersonic combat jet – flown via a virtual reality helmet.

The £100million Tempest, due to enter service in 2035, will also be the first to be operated either manned or unmanned.

It is being designed by British firms BAe Systems and Rolls-Royce.

Hypersonic aircraft will fly at more than Mach 5 or 4,000mph – three times as fast as existing aircraft.

Pilots will be able to “feel” the controls using special virtual reality gloves and fly the aircraft using a helmet-mounted display screen. BAe Systems’ Jean Page said: “We are looking at what we are calling a wearable cockpit.

“You remove many of the physical elements of the cockpit, and replace it with a virtual display, projected through the helmet.”

...

Ozair wrote:

It is the Daily Star so take this story with a healthy dose of salt but apparently the Tempest program is looking at building an aircraft capable of hypersonic speeds…. Additionally a wearable cockpit by potentially removing many of the cockpit controls and having them virtually displayed via the helmet while using virtual reality gloves. Not sure how much of a cost saving or advantage that would be.

RAF plans world's first hypersonic combat jet - flown via virtual reality helmet

The RAF is planning the world’s first hypersonic combat jet – flown via a virtual reality helmet.

The £100million Tempest, due to enter service in 2035, will also be the first to be operated either manned or unmanned.

It is being designed by British firms BAe Systems and Rolls-Royce.

Hypersonic aircraft will fly at more than Mach 5 or 4,000mph – three times as fast as existing aircraft.

Pilots will be able to “feel” the controls using special virtual reality gloves and fly the aircraft using a helmet-mounted display screen. BAe Systems’ Jean Page said: “We are looking at what we are calling a wearable cockpit.

“You remove many of the physical elements of the cockpit, and replace it with a virtual display, projected through the helmet.”

...

https://www.dailystar.co.uk/news/latest ... c-21310058

Gingersnap wrote:

Ozair wrote:

It is the Daily Star so take this story with a healthy dose of salt but apparently the Tempest program is looking at building an aircraft capable of hypersonic speeds…. Additionally a wearable cockpit by potentially removing many of the cockpit controls and having them virtually displayed via the helmet while using virtual reality gloves. Not sure how much of a cost saving or advantage that would be.

RAF plans world's first hypersonic combat jet - flown via virtual reality helmet

The RAF is planning the world’s first hypersonic combat jet – flown via a virtual reality helmet.

The £100million Tempest, due to enter service in 2035, will also be the first to be operated either manned or unmanned.

It is being designed by British firms BAe Systems and Rolls-Royce.

Hypersonic aircraft will fly at more than Mach 5 or 4,000mph – three times as fast as existing aircraft.

Pilots will be able to “feel” the controls using special virtual reality gloves and fly the aircraft using a helmet-mounted display screen. BAe Systems’ Jean Page said: “We are looking at what we are calling a wearable cockpit.

“You remove many of the physical elements of the cockpit, and replace it with a virtual display, projected through the helmet.”

...

https://www.dailystar.co.uk/news/latest ... c-21310058

Augmented reality is closer to the truth, which if the technology I've seen is correct, won't require much in the way of specialised gloves to operate.

SAS A340 wrote:

https://www.airway1.com/sweden-gives-green-light-to-substitute-for-gripen-fighter/?fbclid=IwAR3I_bayc-mRj3wR-4RP1MzEPW9oJcfHpHKuwZD3Y4HbVciyTZA7HbQJGV0
Gripen E is more than well equipped to take on missions until 6.gen. fighter jets arrive.

SAS A340 wrote:

SAAB does not have the muscle or economy to challenge the market of 6.e generation fighter jets alone and will thus wholeheartedly go into this project and contribute to it.

Seven new companies are to collaborate with Team Tempest, the consortium delivering the UK’s next generation combat aircraft known as Tempest.

The companies who have signed a partnership are: GEUK, GKN, Collins Aerospace, Martin Baker, QinetiQ, Bombardier and Thales UK

SAS A340 wrote:

Saab will open a new center for future fighter jet capability in the UK, according to a press release. The investment initially costs £50 million, equivalent to SEK 566 million, and is announced in light of Sweden's and the UK's Memorandum of Understanding of Future Combat Air Systems (FCAS).
Sorry, Only in Swedish so far.
https://www.di.se/live/saab-satsar-over ... gsformaga/

art wrote:

Seven new companies are to collaborate with Team Tempest, the consortium delivering the UK’s next generation combat aircraft known as Tempest.

The companies who have signed a partnership are: GEUK, GKN, Collins Aerospace, Martin Baker, QinetiQ, Bombardier and Thales UK

https://ukdefencejournal.org.uk/more-co ... programme/

Ozair wrote:

SAS A340 wrote:

Saab will open a new center for future fighter jet capability in the UK, according to a press release. The investment initially costs £50 million, equivalent to SEK 566 million, and is announced in light of Sweden's and the UK's Memorandum of Understanding of Future Combat Air Systems (FCAS).
Sorry, Only in Swedish so far.
https://www.di.se/live/saab-satsar-over ... gsformaga/

So really what we have is SAAB joining the program but not announcing it as such given they don’t want to hurt export potential for their current in production aircraft that is still in test.

Janes take on it here, https://www.janes.com/defence-news/news ... to-tempest

BAE Systems Selects Collins Aerospace to Provide Next-Gen Actuation for UK Tempest Technology Demonstration Program

Without a defence budget large enough to self-finance development of its next-generation fighter, the BAE Systems Tempest, the UK will have to forge partnerships with foreign countries to help shoulder the cost.

While it might have made financial sense for London to partner with the Franco-German Future Combat Air System (FCAS) project, led by Dassault Aviation and Airbus, politics have made that increasingly unlikely, aerospace industry experts say during an FIA Connect 2020 webinar on 21 July.

...

art wrote:

UK may only buy about 70 F-35 (instead of a mooted 138).

art wrote:

UK may only buy about 70 F-35 (instead of a mooted 138).

https://www.defense-aerospace.com/artic ... chase.html

If that is not entirely down to cost cutting, I wonder if that might boost the size of any future UK Tempest orders.

art wrote:

Would anyone care to hazard a guess as to how many might be ordered by UK, Italy and Sweden?

art wrote:

Whatever that number is, I could see 100+ being added to it by India if it becomes clear in the next few years that AMCA will never get off the ground and is abandoned. China is a growing threat to India. Early examples of the mainstay of the IAF, the Su-30MKI, will be getting old in the 2030's (first 32 were delivered 2002-2004) while China may well have an acceptable 5G fighter in its inventory before 2030, so it looks likely that the IAF will need some kind of substitute for a no show AMCA.

SamYeager2016 wrote:

art wrote:

UK may only buy about 70 F-35 (instead of a mooted 138).

How would that affect any workshare agreements if it came to pass?