By Dominic Perry2021-05-05T09:14:00+01:00
With the UK set to replace its Royal Air Force (RAF) fleet of 23 Puma HC2 helicopters by the middle of this decade, the contenders are already lining up.
But the competition will be one of the first major procurements in the country to be conducted under new rules designed to make economic and social factors a core part of the selection process, potentially tilting the field.
Source: Crown Copyright
Puma fleet is scheduled for retirement in mid-2020s
At this stage of the process much still remains unknown: the Ministry of Defence (MoD) announced the retirement of the Pumas in its Command Paper
Airbus sees sustainment as key to UK NMH success janes.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from janes.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Viewpoint: HSR, PRP and TSN – at the cutting edge of embedded military comms
Andy Conway, sales manager at military embedded system specialist Recab UK, looks at the critical technologies at the edge of the battlefield and beyond, such as the Ethernet-based HSR, PRP and TSN protocols.
Technology becomes more important to military and defence operations with each passing year. We need only look to the UK Government’s recent Defence Command paper and budget review to reaffirm this, with the country’s priority seemingly being to bolster technological capacity on the battlefield. However, military technology is about more than just swarms of drones or new Boxer armoured vehicles; it’s about the fast and effective relaying of information on the frontline.
Ministers must give greater protection to UK jobs by favouring British defence manufacturers over buying military equipment from overseas, Labour has urged.
Party leader Sir Keir Starmer was backing a “British-built by default” approach, rather than an “open competition” policy that sees off-the-shelf equipment purchased from abroad.
More than £6 billion of spending recently set out by the Government will be spent on surveillance aircraft from overseas, according to Labour analysis.
Labour Party leader Sir Keir Starmer (Ian Forsyth/PA)
But the Ministry of Defence (MoD) defended its strategy, arguing it will see a departure from global competition to boost British manufacturing.
Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer backs UK defence companies as he makes Plymouth visit
He will be coming to the city for a defence-related visit
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