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IN VIEW Special report by Ged Henderson
DOGFIGHT DEVELOPS OVER TEMPEST
Simon Barnes
Flying displays were not the only things up in the air at Farnborough this summer. Uncertainty over the future of Tempest, the UK's next-generation combat fighter, cast its shadow over the international airshow.
Concerns were aired within the industry that the programme, seen as massively important to Lancashire’s economic future, could be scaled back as the new Labour government reviews the state of the nation’s defences.
On his visit to Farnborough, where a new concept model of Tempest was unveiled, Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer spoke of the importance of the sixth-generation jet programme, being developed jointly by the UK, Italy and Japan.
However, he stopped short of guaranteeing the Global Combat Air Programme (GCAP),
working to deliver Tempest by 2035, would not be affected by Labour’s defence policy review, which will report next year.
Ben Wallace, the former Lancashire Conservative MP and defence secretary, warned the lack of that firm commitment was “jeopardising tens of thousands of jobs in the UK.”
Engineers from across BAE Systems are working on the project, with much of its development, including the creation of a flying combat air demonstrator, taking place at its Lancashire plants in Warton and Samlesbury. It is set to take to the air within three years.
BAE System’s line on Tempest is that its delivery would ‘enable the UK to retain control over its own security, support important international relationships and meet future
threats, whilst contributing to economic growth and prosperity’.
It has also pointed out the programme is already generating more than 3,500 jobs across the country.
Asked about the defence review, Simon Barnes, the recently appointed group managing director, air, for BAE Systems, told Lancashire Business View: “It is right and proper as governments come in that they take a look at defence and they go through a process which is very structured and laid out.
“I’m really confident in what BAE Systems is, what the air sector is, what it represents to the UK in terms of military capability, national value, skills and growth. You put those together and it is an incredibly powerful combination.
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