RAF Plans 4 AI Drones per Typhoon by 2030 as Britain Readies for Russia
Updated
Updated · The Guardian · Oct 26
RAF Plans 4 AI Drones per Typhoon by 2030 as Britain Readies for Russia
3 articles · Updated · The Guardian · Oct 26
Summary
Four armed AI-enabled drones would accompany each RAF Typhoon under a plan Air Chief Marshal Harv Smyth said should enter service by 2030, with first tests due next year.
Smyth said the shift to “autonomy, not flesh” is meant to prepare Britain for a potential fight with Russia, extend reach hundreds of miles into contested airspace and ease pressure on recruitment.
The concept builds on the £300 million Storm Fighter programme announced in July, with one use case tracking Russian aircraft near the Greenland-Ireland-UK gap from a Typhoon flying over Scotland.
The RAF is pursuing the change as AI accelerates targeting in wars involving the US, Israel, Russia and Ukraine, and as its fully trained strength has fallen from 29,800 in 2020 to 27,850.