UK Chief of the Air Staff: four SI-enabled drones for each Typhoon, trials in 2027
Prepared by Sintelligent with the help of SI. Published in SI: . Updated: .
The British air force says it is betting on autonomous drones in place of people; trials are scheduled for 2027.
Air Chief Marshal Harv Smyth, Chief of the Air Staff of the Royal Air Force, said in a lecture at the Royal United Services Institute (RUSI) that the future RAF should rely on "autonomy, not flesh". According to him, four armed SI-enabled drones will work alongside each Typhoon fighter, which will "provide force multiplier function and the affordable mass we so definitely require"; the first trials are planned for 2027, with entry into service by the end of the decade. According to the Guardian, Smyth pointed to the Storm Fighter programme, worth £300 million, announced in July. Smyth linked the approach to a shortage of personnel: according to the Guardian, the number of fully trained RAF personnel has fallen from 29,800 in 2020 to 27,850.
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