𝓤𝓷𝓲𝓽𝓮𝓭 𝓝𝓮𝔀𝓼

The Royal Air Force is ready to shoot down “many more drones” at radically less expense to the taxpayer. Britain has a new “low cost” anti-drone system which has gone from testing to deployment in less than two months. RAF Typhoon fighter jets will be fitted with the new Advanced Precision Kill Weapon System (APKWS) so targets can be destroyed “at a fraction of the price of missiles currently used”.

A test strike against a ground target in March was followed with “air-to-air firing in April” in a demonstration of its anti-drone capabilities. It has now been deployed on operations in the Middle East.

Defence minister Luke Pollard said: “This has been a superb effort, working with industry to test and deploy this system in a matter of months, which will help the RAF shoot down many more drones at a much lower cost. Our Typhoon fleet is the backbone of UK and NATO air defence, with the RAF protecting European’s Eastern flank from Russian drone incursions and defending our partners across the Middle East.”

The Ministry of Defence says its laser targeting system turns “unguided missiles into low-cost precision weapons” capable of countering the increasing threat of drones.

Simon Barnes of BAE Systems said the Typhoon is “the backbone of combat air across Europe and the Middle East.”

Steve Wadey of defence specialist QinetiQ, which also worked on the new anti-drone system, said: “From engineering expertise to live trials, our teams are providing the fundamental support needed by our armed forces, to deliver the urgent capabilities that ensure the UK and its allies remain safe and warfighting-ready.”

Pilots and aircrew have notched up 2,500 flying hours since the latest conflict in the Middle East – the equivalent of more than three months of continuous flying.

Air Commodore Donal McGurk said: “We welcome the speed of development and meticulous testing behind the deployment of these missile systems for use on our Typhoons. They are a valuable addition to the air defence package we are already employing with agility across the Middle East.”

This follows the signing of a deal to buy Skyhammer interceptor missiles to take out attack drones. In January, more than £650million was committed to upgrade the RAF’s Typhoon fighter jet fleet. This has secured 1,500-plus UK jobs and means the fleet will “continue protecting British skies until at least the 2040s”.