On 9 September, Edward Morello MP asked the Ministry of Defence what steps were being taken to improve Britain’s domestic capability in drone technology production.
Responding, Defence Minister Luke Pollard said the department is working closely with industry and allies to ensure the UK keeps pace with rapid advances. He noted that “Defence routinely engages with industry to iterate, and spiral develop capability in close cooperation with allies.”
A key part of this approach is drawing lessons from active conflicts, particularly Ukraine. Pollard explained that “one of the key mechanisms to ensure that Defence is up to date with the latest developments in drone technology and associated tactics is learning lessons from global conflicts and through our support to Ukraine, where drone capabilities are developed and exploited in cooperation with drone component suppliers.”
The Strategic Defence Review set out new structures to formalise this effort. Pollard confirmed that “the recommendation to establish a Defence Uncrewed System Centre (DUSC) at Initial Operating Capability by February 2026 will be an important cohering and directing component alongside the Defence Uncrewed Systems Design Authority (DUxDA) for advancing the UK’s domestic capability in drone technology production.”
He added that specific innovations seen in Ukraine, including the development of wired drone technology, would directly inform British capability choices. “Lessons have been learned with regard to developments in wired drone technology witnessed in the Ukraine conflict which will inform a broader understanding of where to focus Defence capability development as outlined in the SDR,” Pollard said.
He concluded that Defence will continue to invest in drones in tandem with British industry to strengthen sovereign capabilities and ensure the UK remains competitive in an area that is reshaping the future battlefield.
We have so many plans we’ve no money for any planes..
@Geoff
Very good!
I have no idea how all of this can be done with no new money – as far as I can see there is none of that incoming.
All the spending is going to be future promises against growth – which won’t get started whilst we are taxed into the ground and tied up in red tape.
The only way of getting the merrygoround working again is to give the welfare bill a very good prune.
I’m sure you’re right about no new money. I’ve never believed there ever would be. I also think that’s why the MOD are drowning us in announcements that never make sense – they’ve nothing else to offer.
We are at least exporting T26 and T31 either as a design, parts, or full fabrication.
CAMM is also exporting rather well.
E7 is an interesting addition to UK MIL exports.
Thanks S.B. I try ! Your point is the main one though. Will we ever have a government that is going to say and then do what they say? I very much doubt it.
Let’s cut to the chase
We’ve a budget of 60 billion pounds, imagine Ukraine having that.
Money isn’t the issue it’s top to tail incompetence.
That, and that much of that 60 billion doesn’t go on conventional forces.
True but conventional forces aren’t the only way of defending the country.
We need to set some priorities and focus there to start with. Certainly drones and combating enemy drones are a priority.
Agreed. For example, i often list the UKIC as equal to the forces in that regard, and the CT Police network, which absorbed Special Branch.
You can’t complain about the lack of troops, tanks, ships, drones and planes, you can’t complain about hollowing out of our military forces and the lack of support, if you buy into the bs numbers that say operations budget counts, money spent on intelligence counts, money spent on border force and policing counts, civil defence counts, pension money counts, recycling VAT straight back to the treasury counts, CASD counts (a deterrence isn’t necessarily a defence). And that’s not including the new bs numbers where energy, transport infrastructure, NHS, education, pretty much anything that gives our country resillience counts too, up to about £40bn.
I’m not saying we shouldn’t spend on those things any more than I’m saying we shouldn’t spend money on housing; however, we also have to spend a minimum amount on building conventional (non-nuclear) UK military capability. And we aren’t. If we’re spending much above 1.1% of GDP on conventional capability, I’d be surprised. That’s what we have to measure and track if we don’t want our arned forces to atrophy even further.
If it’s a drone why is there somebody waving out of the top?
One of the biggest lessons from Ukraine for drones is that the Western model of weapons development and procurement is simply too slow,
Drone technology is changing so fast, there is a risk we’ll will be designing and building drones that are already obsolete.
New drones have to be designed, produced and ready for use in months not decades
Weeks. Not only that you need a production line for drones which are evolving daily.
Government needs to step back and pay for the production of any viable prototype from any UK company.
Then the military needs to try them out, suggest improvements and ask if they can be mass produced quickly.
Unfortuneately this is exactly how it is not done today. The MOD & Government need to stay out of drone design. It is not in their skill set.
Another plan, another strategy, another initiative – just buy some bl**dy kit !