Defense technology company QinetiQ said it has completed the first demonstration in the United Kingdom of a team-up between a manned jet plane and an autonomous jet drone. The test involved a QinetiQ jet aircraft, which flew from the U.K. Ministry of Defence’s Boscombe Down site in Salisbury, and a modified Banshee Jet 80 drone...
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Tag: UK
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Reactivated UK, Australian Air Force Squadron to Collaborate on F-35 Mission Programming
The United Kingdom’s Royal Air Force and the Royal Australian Air Force have reactivated No. 80 Squadron, a historic unit for both service branches, to cooperate on mission data file programming for their respective F-35 variants’ warfighting capabilities. The RAF’s Squadron 80 traces back to World War I in 1917 but went inactive in 1969,...
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UK Commits $416M Investment to Produce More Drones for Ukraine’s Armed Forces
The United Kingdom is sending thousands of drones to Ukraine to aid in the fight against Russia. On Thursday, Grant Shapps, the U.K.’s defense secretary, unveiled a $160 million funding package during his visit to Kyiv, where he met Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Defence Minister Rustem Umerov. The funding is in addition to the $256...
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New Defense Pact Seeks to Enhance UK-Australia Security Cooperation
Australian Defence Minister Richard Marles and U.K. Secretary of State for Defence Grant Shapps have signed a new defense and security cooperation agreement to strengthen the partnership between Canberra and London on common issues and concerns. The U.K. government said the pact was signed during the annual Australia-United Kingdom Ministerial Consultations, or AUKMIN, held Friday...
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Ukraine Starts Security Guarantee Consultations With the UK
Ukraine and the United Kingdom have begun consultations on security guarantees, which Kyiv hopes to secure before the end of 2023. Andriy Yermak, Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s chief of staff, confirmed the consultations in televised comments on Friday. The Ukrainian government is pursuing security guarantees from global powers to ensure that Ukraine will receive adequate support to defend...
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UK Regulator Clears Broadcom Plan to Acquire VMware
The Competition and Markets Authority in the U.K. said it has given the green light for U.S.-based computer chip and software maker Broadcom’s acquisition of cloud technology company VMware after determining that the deal does not weaken market competition. Reports said regulators launched an investigation over concerns that the combination of the two technology companies...
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Teledyne Secures $31M Kongsberg Deal to Provide Counter-UAS for Ukraine
Teledyne FLIR Defense has received a $31 million contract from Norway’s Kongsberg Defence & Aerospace to deliver the Cerberus XL mobile counter-unmanned aerial system for Ukraine’s use. Under the agreement, Teledyne will also provide software, spares and training support for the counter-UAS solution. In a statement, JihFen Lei, executive vice president and general manager of...
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Jacobs Joins Team to Help Cut UK Annual Emissions
Dallas, Texas-based consultancy firm Jacobs said it has joined a team of advisers to the UK Department for Energy Security and Net Zero’s Carbon Capture, Utilization and Storage program. According to the U.K.’s Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, the aim of CCUS is to capture an annual 6 million tons of industrial carbon...
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UK Forms Defense Organization Focused on Integration
The United Kingdom has a new entity to oversee defense integration across the government, with industry and international allies. UK Strategic Command introduced the Integration Design Authority at the recent Defence & Security Equipment International held in London. According to Lt. Gen. Tom Copinger-Symes, who heads StratCom, IDA is “an important outcome” of the military unit’s operating...
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AUKUS Could Involve More Countries in Efforts to Integrate Emerging Technologies Into Military
Australia, the United Kingdom and the United States are mulling the possibility of welcoming the contributions of other countries in Pillar 2 of their AUKUS security partnership. AUKUS has two lines of effort: Pillar 1 is focused on aiding Australia to acquire nuclear-powered submarines while Pillar 2 will explore the integration of emerging technologies in military...