This talk about France going alone: didn't the FCAS partners sign an agreement a month or so ago?

For now India is just buying the Rafale-M https://www.newindianexpress.com/nation/2023/mar/22/cabinet-committee-on-security-likely-to-seal-rafale-m-deal-today-2558326.html Filling French treasury and giving them the (wrong) idea that they can go alone. How do you mean 'giving them the (wrong) idea ...

Would India be allowed the F35? Wouldn't the TF-X be a better solution for them? I presume GCAP would also have "export" versions, which are a little less state of the heart. I can't imagine India is particularly secure if you need to keep your radar absorbing features safe. Yes, not cert...

By the way, India's parliamentary Standing Committee on Defence yesterday said: "The government should consider buying state-of-the-art fifth generation fighter aircraft over the counter..." In 1983 India set out to design a light combat aircraft intended to start replacing hundreds of MiG...

The big challenge is making a sale off the shelf and not getting them involved in the development. Also, the antagonistic relations that exist between Italy-India and Sweden-India are a big drag on the hopes of making such a sale. It would have been ideal if this was just a clean development betwee...

We need the current government to sign up to some Gordon Brown style Carrier contracts to be sure of that.... I hope they do..... The looming UK general election must be a slight concern to the Japanese government, in this critical moment when the embryonic corporate structure of Tempest is being f...

At the DSEI Japan exhibition in Tokyo, the national industry champions for advanced defence electronics representing Japan, the UK and Italy have announced the signing of a collaboration agreement, the next formal step towards a permanent industrial construct. The companies: Mitsubishi Electric rep...

Personally don’t think civil and military aircraft sit naturally in the same corporation, it’s like the Ferrari F1 team owning an HGV manufacturer. Exor, the investment company of the Agnelli family, that controls Ferrari also control CNH who make tractors and construction equipment and IVECO who m...

I think that Germany should have foreseen that it might not be happy with its role in FCAS and should have clarified red line sticking points with France right at the start before investing in FCAS. If it could not, it could have looked at what involvement it could negotiate with Tempest instead. I ...

FCAS will be completely ITAR free and provide them operational independence. GCAP is also going to be ITAR free... Is the UK ITAR-free? In my estimation the 'special relationship' entails the UK doing as the US wants when the two countries have differing views.. Would that extend to the UK trying t...

The security risk from the wests stand point is with them sharing the tech of what would be our new main line fighter with the likes of Russia to suit there own needs, like you said India doesn’t give 2 hoots about us so once they’ve got the aircraft why would they care about screwing us over after...

Absolutely the last thing you want to do it is start adding exquisite requirements on the platform, it’s what drives increased thru life costs, especially weapons integration costs. Make the weapons do the hard bits and keep the platform “simple” I was thinking more on the lines of partner a wants ...

About defining the performance requirements of the 6G aircraft, would it not be useful to consult potential 'non-team' customers to take into account what they require? In particular, should they express needs for requirements that surpass 'home team' requirements, the time to consider raising aspec...

Ron5 wrote: ↑02 Mar 2023, 12:54 The UK needs more Navy F-35's a damn sight more than extra Typhoons. The fact they are also cheaper and superior is just icing on the cake.

How many F-35's can the navy use for the carriers?

If some token Saudi involvement in GCAP (a) brought development funding (b) brought substantial orders (c) opened the door to sales to other Arabian states SA participation could be beneficial to the programme. However, I recall Saudi Arabia's track record regarding setting up an assembly line for T...

Well if you want an idea of comparison one of the typhoon design points was for it to hold a cap for a couple of hours at 100 nm range. I suspect in combat you could change the hawk radius of action you quote to it range without much loiter time. Agreed but I don't think it negates the point I made...

Post war, Russia will still be able to hit Ukrainian fighter bases from its own territory so F-35B or Gripen look best suited to Ukraine to me, rather than F-16/Rafale/Typhoon. What also counts against Typhoon is that anything flying will need to be able to operate at low altitude should hostilities...

Design and manufacture of the demonstrator using U.K. tier 1s and other has been underway for some time. Under a variety of project names. Good point chaps, I suppose it depends on what you mean by demonstrator. Is an aircraft, based on the large Farnborough Tempest mockup actually under constructi...

The UK Ministry of Defence (MoD) has awarded BAE Systems GBP1.4 billion (USD1.7 billion) to lead the country's Global Combat Air Programme (GCAP) effort. Announced on 15 February, the award is a continuation of the Future Combat Air System (FCAS) research and development work of Team Tempest that co...

Personal guesstimate based on thumb in the air is that Dassault will balk at setting up a fully fledged production line in India, including the required long term commitment to TT. It’s not something they’ve really done before unless you count the blueprints for the mirage 3 that were “accidentally...

I totally agree that India would be a potentially good client for Tempest, my big issue would be I wouldn't trust them with the technology unfortunately. As a non aligned fence sitter and operating in a seemingly permanent state of chaotic governance ( he said tongue in cheek, with the state of the...

I think Turkey could potentially produce a capable product, they do seem to naturally good engineers. Their domestically assembled F16's are said to be the most reliable and best assembled of the breed apparently. As for India, no chance, HAL work in such a chaotic haphazard way they couldn't find ...

Typhoons not being sent until after the war has ended- according to media reports this evening What's the point of sending weapons after the war is won? They are needed to win the war. I wonder how many hours training are required to convert an experienced MiG-29 fighter pilot to fly Typhoon well e...

The only additional countries to order would surely be F-15 operators (given the size of the Tempest). And they would more than likely just buy from the Yanks again wouldn't they? I think a little place called India would have bought 126 ten years ago if the price had been lower. India was obliged ...

I think that the best chance for GCAP to be successful (customers placing large orders) involves roping in countries with a need to place large orders for such an aircraft. Japan, UK, Italy may order 300-500 between them, subject to cost. What other countries with aerospace industries and a future ...