Operational clearances are now in place for the use of Brimstone 3 on the Protector RG Mk1, after trial data was reviewed, according to an answer given in Parliament.
Ben Obese-Jecty, the Conservative member for Huntingdon, asked when the Secretary of State expected to issue operational clearances for using Brimstone 3 on the Protector platform, following an answer given on 8 September.
Luke Pollard, the Minister of State for Defence, said: “Trial data has been reviewed, and operational clearances are now in place supporting the use of Brimstone 3 on Protector RG Mk1.”
Protector is the Royal Air Force’s replacement for Reaper, built by General Atomics as the MQ-9B SkyGuardian and operated from RAF Waddington by 31 Squadron and 56 Squadron. The aircraft was certified to fly in unsegregated airspace, which Reaper never was, and that certification is what allows it to operate from a British base over British skies, and not only from deployed locations.
Brimstone 3 is the latest version of the MBDA missile built at Stevenage and Bolton, with a dual-mode seeker combining millimetre wave radar and semi-active laser guidance, an insensitive munition rocket motor and software improvements over Brimstone 2. The weapon was designed for moving targets and has been used from Typhoon and from Reaper, and Ukraine has fired it from ground-launched improvised mountings against Russian armour.
Britain has ordered sixteen Protector aircraft, with the programme having run later than originally planned. The type achieved initial operating capability and the fleet has been building at Waddington, with aircraft also used for maritime surveillance tasking and for support to civil authorities.
The Military Aviation Authority cleared Protector to carry Paveway IV and Brimstone earlier in the programme.
Not a game changer but a good additional weapons and good to see a UK weapon being added rather than going for an export order.
There is good potential for export order from the Italians who operate the same aircraft I believe?