British Aerospace plc (BAe) was a British aircraft, munitions and defence-systems manufacturer that was formed in 1977. Its head office was at Warwick House in the Farnborough Aerospace Centre in Farnborough, Hampshire. It purchased Marconi Electronic Systems, the defence electronics and naval shipbuilding subsidiary of the General Electric Company, in 1999 to form BAE Systems.
Construcciones Aeronáuticas SA (CASA) was a Spanish aircraft manufacturer that was founded in 1923 and began manufacturing aircraft the following year. In 1999 it became a subsidiary of the EADS under the name EADS CASA and in 2009 was absorbed into Airbus Military. CASA is noted for designing and producing military transport aircraft such as the CASA C-212 Aviocar, the CASA CN-235, the CASA C-295 and the CASA C-101 trainer/ground attack aircraft.
The Eurofighter Typhoon is a European multinational twin-engine, supersonic, canard delta wing, multirole fighter. The Typhoon was designed originally as an air-superiority fighter and is manufactured by a consortium of Airbus, BAE Systems and Leonardo that conducts the majority of the project through a joint holding company, Eurofighter Jagdflugzeug GmbH. The NATO Eurofighter and Tornado Management Agency, representing the UK, Germany, Italy and Spain, manages the project and is the prime customer.
MBDA is a European multinational developer and manufacturer of missiles. It was created in December 2001 after the merger of the main French, British and Italian missile systems companies; Matra, BAe Dynamics and Alenia. These were previously the missile subsidiaries of Aérospatiale-Matra, BAE Systems and Finmeccanica. The company's headquarters are located in Le Plessis-Robinson, France.
The Meteor is a European active radar guided beyond-visual-range air-to-air missile (BVRAAM) developed and manufactured by MBDA. It offers a multi-shot capability, and has the ability to engage highly maneuverable targets such as jet aircraft, and small targets such as UAVs and cruise missiles in a heavy electronic countermeasures (ECM) environment with a range far in excess of 200 kilometres (110 nmi).
The Missile Transportable Anti-aérien Léger, commonly called Mistral, is a French infrared homing short range air defense system manufactured by MBDA France. Based on the French SATCP, the development of the portable system later to become the Mistral began in 1974. The first version of the system was introduced in 1988 (S1), the second in 1997, and the third in 2018.
Eurofighter Jagdflugzeug GmbH is a multinational company that coordinates the design, production and upgrade of the Eurofighter Typhoon military jet.
Brimstone is a ground or air-launched ground attack missile developed by MBDA UK for the UK's Royal Air Force. It was originally intended for "fire-and-forget" use against mass formations of enemy armour, using a millimetre wave (mmW) active radar homing seeker to ensure accuracy even against moving targets. Experience in Afghanistan led to the addition of laser guidance in the dual-mode Brimstone missile, allowing a "spotter" to pick out specific and the highest priority targets, particularly useful to minimise collateral damage when friendly forces or civilians were in the area. The tandem shaped-charge warhead is much more effective against modern tanks than older similar weapons such as the AGM-65G Maverick missile. Three Brimstones are carried on a launcher that occupies a single weapon station, allowing a single aircraft to carry many missiles.
The Eurofighter Typhoon is in service with nine nations: United Kingdom, Germany, Italy, Spain, Saudi Arabia, Oman, Qatar, Kuwait, and Austria, with orders for all nine customers still pending as of September 2017. The aircraft has, as of 2016, been provided in a basic air-defense form and has been upgraded to newer production standards which include internal IRST, air-to-ground precision strike capability, and HMSS helmets. Most of the major systems including the CAPTOR radar and the Defence Aids Sub-System (DASS) are expected to be improved and updated over time, with the radar being updated to an AESA, being the CAPTOR-E/CAESAR, of which the Kuwait Air Force will be the inaugural operator, with first deliveries of their 28 new-built aircraft to commence in 2019.
The Organisation for Joint Armament Cooperation is a European intergovernmental organisation that facilitates and manages collaborative armament programmes through their lifecycle between the governments of Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, and the United Kingdom.
The FREMM, which stands for "European multi-purpose frigate", is a Franco-Italian family of multi-purpose frigates designed by Naval Group and Fincantieri. In France, this surface combatant is known as the "Aquitaine class", while in Italy it is known as the "Bergamini class". The lead ship of the class, Aquitaine, was commissioned in November 2012 by the French Navy. Italy has ordered six general purpose and four anti-submarine variants. France, on the other hand, has ordered six anti-submarine variants and two air-defense ones.
Eurosam GIE is a European manufacturer of anti-air missiles. Eurosam was established in June 1989 for the development of the Famille de missiles Sol-Air Futurs. Eurosam was initially a joint venture between Aérospatiale, Alenia and Thomson-CSF. Now Aérospatiale is a part of MBDA, and Missile and Missile Systems activities of Alenia are now the Italian branch of MBDA. Thomson CSF is now the Thales Group. Thus Eurosam is owned by MBDA France and MBDA Italy as well as Thales Group (33%).
The GFF4, previously KMW Grizzly, is a medium weight MRAP armored personnel carrier, developed by Krauss-Maffei Wegmann (KMW), designed for operation with the German Army based on the 6x6 Trakker chassis from Iveco adapted to meet the needs of the German Army. It is being developed under the direction of the German Ministry of Defence Federal Office of Defense Technology and Procurement. The GFF4 is designed to meet the German Army's "Class 4" protected command and role-specific vehicles, with a gross vehicle weight of 25 tons, and transportable on the Airbus A400M aircraft. Currently, the German Army could use only the smaller 12.5 ton ATF Dingo 2 or the 33 ton Boxer MRAV.
The aerospace industry of the United Kingdom is the second-largest national aerospace industry in the world and the largest in Europe by turnover, with a global market share of 17% in 2019. In 2020, the industry employed 116,000 people.
The planning for the future of the Royal Air Force involves supporting ongoing British military operations, the introduction of new aircraft types including unmanned aerial vehicles, greater focus on network enabled capability and increasing interoperability with members of NATO, team tempest, and mixed crewed fighters. From the updated plans of the RAF (2021) state that the new initiative will focus on becoming carbon net-zero, with strategies such as using sustainable aviation fuels in aircraft. The RAF also are looking into investing in the maintenance of the aircraft to ensure success of future operations.
The CAMM is a family of surface-to-air missiles developed by MBDA UK for the United Kingdom. CAMM is derived from and shares some common features and components with the ASRAAM, but with updated electronics, a soft vertical launch system, and an active radar homing seeker. Beyond the UK, the CAMM family is either currently in-use or has been ordered by nine other nations.
The Lancaster House Treaties of 2010 are two treaties between the United Kingdom and France for defence and security cooperation. They were signed at 10 Downing Street on 2 November 2010 by British prime minister David Cameron and French President Nicolas Sarkozy.
Airbus Defence and Space is the division of Airbus SE responsible for the development and manufacturing of the corporation's defense and space products and providing related services. The division was formed in January 2014 during the corporate restructuring of European Aeronautic Defense and Space (EADS) into Airbus SE, and comprises the former Airbus Military, Astrium, and Cassidian divisions. It is said to be the world's second largest space company.
The Select Precision Effects At Range (SPEAR) Capability 3, or simply referred to as SPEAR 3 is a future British air-to-ground and possibly anti-ship cruise missile that could also be considered a loitering munition. It is currently planned to be integrated on the Eurofighter Typhoon, F-35B Lightning and possibly Tempest.
Eurofighter Typhoon procurement is the planned selection and purchase of the Eurofighter Typhoon jet fighter by various countries.
