The United Kingdom is nearing the completion of its first crewed stealth fighter in four decades, a milestone achieved through the Team Tempest partnership.
Key development steps have been reached, including the assembly of approximately half of the aircraft’s main structure, the completion of upgrades to the Excalibur flight‑test platform, and significant progress on the Orpheus engine demonstrator.
The programme brings together the Ministry of Defence, BAE Systems, Leonardo UK, MBDA, and Rolls‑Royce, advancing the Future Combat Air System and supporting the Global Combat Air Programme.
More than 11,500 components have been designed, representing roughly 90% of the aircraft’s weight, many of which are produced through the domestic supply chain.
A robotically assembled component has been completed at BAE Systems’ Factory of the Future and will undergo testing later this year together with one of the aircraft’s wings.
The Excalibur flight‑test aircraft, serving as a flying laboratory, has finished a major modification programme and is preparing for the next phase of flight trials to evaluate advanced sensing and communications technologies.
Statements from the director of Future Combat Air highlight that these achievements reduce technical risk and strengthen the United Kingdom’s sovereign air power capabilities for the future.
Since its launch in 2018, the Team Tempest initiative has concentrated on developing the technologies, engineering expertise, and industrial capacity needed to deliver a next‑generation combat aircraft for the UK.
