The Ministry of Defence has confirmed that trials of high-altitude uncrewed balloons conducted in South Dakota under Project Aether successfully met or exceeded all objectives.
The tests form part of a wider effort to develop long-endurance, high-altitude Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) platforms capable of operating in challenging conditions, according to the department.
Responding to a written question from Ben Obese-Jecty, Conservative MP for Huntingdon, Defence Minister Luke Pollard said “the trials in South Dakota were successful and achieved or surpassed all intended test objectives.”
He outlined that these objectives included “providing 24-hour Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance coverage in high-latitude winter conditions at high altitude; locating, identifying, and tracking signals, and disseminating data over both Line of Sight and Satellite communications; maintaining continuous endurance at high altitude; and enabling airborne handover of ISR coverage between different platforms.”
Project Aether is part of the Ministry of Defence’s broader effort to expand uncrewed and near-space surveillance capabilities. The programme seeks to field systems capable of operating in the stratosphere for extended durations, offering persistent intelligence collection at a fraction of the cost of traditional satellite or crewed aircraft platforms.
According to the Ministry of Defence, further analysis of the data collected during the South Dakota trials will inform future development and potential operational concepts for long-endurance uncrewed surveillance platforms.
Great, another trial going no where, it does have project name though. Instead of an tracked long over due new IFV the infantry can use ballons? they are cheaper. The loonies at the MOD and CDS think wish ful thinking and trials will scare Russia? If they were hot air ballons then the MOD is sorted so much long winded going no where hot air statements over the past 15 months will keep them topped up.
As I read on Twitter yesterday….if a military were judged by the amount of hot air coming out of politicians mouths and program announcements, we would dominate the world.
Agreed, F all to show for any thing. Are the MOD or government saving money by just not ordering any thing new, no rush after all the crazed CDS keeps saying war with Russia and does nothing, state normal. Our army is a joke hard to say that but its true.
I would never go that far mate.
Our military, including the Army, is well trained, professional, well regarded, well equipped in many areas, able to operate with the US, with a logistic tail to match and ability to deploy where many other nations military sit on the tarmac shiny and looking good.
We remain a nuclear power, an intelligence power, a Cyber power, and a Special Forces power.
What we lack is mass and any sort of reserve, and the cracks are widening as governments simply refuse to agree that mass is a factor and try to address this and kit continues to be cut and not replaced. Or just happily given away.
So no, the Army is not a joke, overall. But, yes, you could say the RA having only 14 SPG is a joke, for a nation of our standing. But that is not the fault of the Army.
Hoping for 80 to 100 RCH155. Anything else is a bonus.
Ok, point made the Army is a mess, i do feel with the RCH 155 we may order no more than 96/116. More would be great but we simply to not have the back up for them ie Ammo and supply vehicles. Our ammo stocks are still at an all time low. Be intresting to see if we ever order any fully tracked guns. Would make sense to just not sure we will.
Ok to finally get gunsbut with out the ammo which we would run out in a week to 10 days its all just pointless. Same for the MLRS A2s. Its fine have 72/74 but its ammo we never have enough of.
Like to see some firm orders not more talk, projects, trials, warm words or plan waffle.
So far, yes mate.
I agree. The original requirement I recall for future fires was for 116 guns, when we had 4 Regiments that needed a SP gun.
Since then, it has collapsed to just 2, though 4 RA with 7Bde will surely get the weapon if they go Boxer mounted.
When did it go down to just two Regts? war time 24 guns per Regt, pretty poor as always the least possible to save a few pence. Should of been ordred last year yet here we are October with nothing just fancy names etc. Same as a tracked IFV or tracked Gun, wish ful thinking. Again
Ok, timeline of decline.
Pre 2010, around 2008**
6 Regiments of AS90 SPG.
Cut to 5 as 19 Mechanized Bde becomes 19 Light and moved to N Ireland.
The 5 Regiments support 1,4,12 Mechanized Brigades and 7,20 Armoured Brigades.
Post 2010 SDSR**
5 Regiments of AS90 SPG, cut to 3, as 4 Mechanized and 7 Armoured become Infantry Brigades in the cuts and get 105mm LG instead.
3 Regiments left, support 1,12,20 Armoured Infantry Brigades.
Post 2015**
The Strike fiasco takes hold.
3 Armoured Brigades to reduce to 2, losing 1, which converts to Strike. And an Infantry Bde will convert to Strike.
1 AS90 SPG Regiment loses its guns, and becomes an MLRS Regiment ( 26 RA ) reversing the imbecilic merry go round of MLRS sometimes being in a Regiment, sometimes not (another story.)
So, 2 Armoured Brigades, each with an AS90 SPG Regiment ( the recent ones before they lost their guns….1 RHA, 19RA.
The 2 Strike Bdes never formed, one became an “Experimental Group” and the Regiments 3 RHA and 4 RA had Light Gun.
But being planned to be Boxer Brigades Light Gun was ridiculous, so one hopped they too might get the new 155mm gun, which could have taken the Regiments so equipped up to 4.
Army2020 Refine**
Death knell of Strike, now only 2 Armoured Brigades, the 2 Strike Bdes are quietly forgotten, and the RA has 2 AS90 Regiments left.
Ukraine War**
The UK government, desperate to help Ukraine ( but also GRANDSTAND, to its own armies regret ) gifts our remaining AS90 SPG in 1 RHA and 19 RA to Ukraine.
19 RA now has, I believe, 14 Archer, half in Estonia, while 1 RHA I believe has sod all save some Light Guns scavenged from other stocks.
A mess.
Current**
2 Brigades now Armoured, 12,20. Require RCH155 or K9.
7 Brigade will become Boxer, by all reports, should get RCH155, naturally?
2 Regiments, possibly 3. A miracle if 4 Bde also goes mechanized and gets RCH155 too, to make 4 Regiments on the type but at present that Brigade has no regular SP Artillery because some idiot politician cut their guns to save Infantry Cap Badges years ago….
I can explain it no clearer than that…and GOD how I hate the Conservatives and Labour…..
that after 39 Regt was disbanded so 26 Regt became MLRS, all in all it was about cutting head counts and why on earth would any one not on drugs think 3 RHA be light gun? a total mess to save pennies that will never be revirsed.
Subject to rising Inflation, the cost’s will be out of this world sky high.
This was announced by MOD in July as having been undertaken “earlier in the year”, so maybe a little late to be newsworthy in October, despite the MP’s question. Which prompts the question why did he ask it when ten seconds Googling would bring up the July announcement.
However, the good news story makes a pleasant change from the trials a couple of years ago in Hawaii, where two Sierra Nevada balloons that were supposed to fly from Hawaii to the east Coast of the US, separately crashed into the Pacific each in less than a day after taking off, neither recoverable. I don’t recall that being announced in the UK at all (full story was covered by Hawaiian press). MOD cut the payload requirements to 3kg and tried again using balloons from Aerostat (of Soux Falls, South Dakota) along with a couple of UK firms, Voltitude and Landguard Systems.
Where Project Aether will go is still up for graps, given there’s still a couple of fixed-wing designs in the frame. I hope that they can return to a higher payload off the back of this success.
What happens when the balloon goes up’?
Well if it did, we’d be screwed.
“further analysis of the data collected during the South Dakota trials will inform future development and potential operational concepts ”
So, no orders, the usual informing decisions, sometime, maybe.
An RAF Balloon Squadron would be a novel, and fine thing.
Meanwhile, someone is flying high altitude recc balloons all over North America, you assume China.
If they are so good, send it to Ukraine so they can monitor the Russians. They would be shot down immediately, so what exactly is the point of these ?
The ones over the US were not shot down easily.
And I assume such a thing has a minimal RCS, and very little IR source, as no hot engine intakes.
So how do you target it if it is sitting at 90,000 feet 100 miles behind the FEBA?
Genuine question.
Has anyone informed the Jet stream that the Boffins at the MOD are now ballon experts ,these were tethered ballons Y/N .Reminds me of the days when Meto would instigate ‘” No smoking abaft the main mast Hydrogen ballon filling in progress” whenever atmospheric data was required and the big orange ballon would sail upwards .