Farnborough International Airshow 2018

Duopoly of Boeing and Airbus Rule the Roost

- R. Chandrakanth

The very first day of the iconic Farnborough International Airshow 2018 (from July 16 to 22) in Hampshire, witnessed two major announcements: One, the United Kingdom unveiling a plan to produce a sixth generation fighter aircraft dubbed ‘Tempest’ and, two, it was ready to fund the aerospace industry to the tune of GBP 300 million immediately. With Brexit (the UK to exit European Union on March 29, 2019) looming large over the UK skies, these announcements were significant from the aerospace and defence perspective as these sectors need all the support that they can garner.

‘Tempest’ is futuristic. The UK Defence Secretary, Gavin Williamson unveiled a full-scale model of the futuristic combat jet which is to be developed over the next two decades, to become operational by 2035. ‘Tempest’ will have both manned and unmanned capabilities and would be part of the GBP 2 billion investment programme. The partners in the programme are going to be BAe Systems (advanced combat air systems and integration); Rolls-Royce (advanced power and propulsion systems); Leonardo (advanced sensors, electronics and avionics); and MBDA (advanced weapons systems). ‘Tempest’ is slated to replace Eurofighter Typhoon.

Eurofighter TYPHOON, CENTRAL PILLAR OF European COMBAT JETS