The UK is expanding its air defence footprint across the Middle East, deploying additional systems and extending fast jet operations as the conflict with Iran enters its second month.
Defence Secretary John Healey confirmed a series of new deployments during a visit to Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Bahrain, including the dispatch of the Sky Sabre air defence system to Saudi Arabia, where it will be integrated into wider regional networks.
“Iran’s aggressive attacks continue to threaten our allies and interests in the Middle East,” Healey said, adding that the UK is “delivering further support by extending our UK jets in Qatar and deploying extra air defence teams and systems.”
A Royal Artillery battery, alongside radar, control and launcher elements, is expected to deploy to Saudi Arabia within days, following a reconnaissance mission to prepare for integration with existing air defence systems. Elsewhere, the UK’s Lightweight Multirole Missile system has been deployed to Bahrain, supported by British personnel to assist with integration, while Rapid Sentry ground-based air defence and the RAF’s ORCUS counter-drone system are now operating in Kuwait.
The UK has also extended the deployment of Typhoon fighter jets in Qatar, where the joint UK-Qatar squadron has been flying defensive missions since the start of the conflict. Aircraft have been operating across Qatar, Bahrain, Jordan and the UAE, contributing to efforts to counter incoming threats.
Healey said UK aircraft and crews have now flown more than 1,280 hours on defensive operations, protecting British nationals, bases and regional partners.
Are these super rich nations footing the bill for all this or is just us being nice. The cost of missile fired has to be paid by the MOD and they are skint at the best of times, Britain again helping when can not afford it. Why can’t the Gulf nations defened them selves that are loaded or at least foot the bill?.
Ukraine now this we have little left and can not afford to replace what we give away. We just go with out.
Yes we must help allies but sadly we can not replace what we use, still not even ordered most of the Ammo we gave to Uraine 4 years ago, firing expensive missiles at cheap drone and flying ouhours added the our aircraft some has pay its always us paying then going with out while our government pats its selfon the back, what do the gulf states ever do for us?
No one ever helps us, funds any thing, we make do and mend with less and less but its ok we take the high moral ground as we help out at our expense again.
The gulf nations are defending themselves, the vast majority of intercepts are done by their aircraft and missile batteries. We are just help like Allie’s as suppose to.
And no we are not presenting anyone with a bill.
The US is trying to get the GCC countries to pay for their operation as they are running out of money and congress won’t fund this war.
More fool us, when have any of Gulf Nations came to our aid, so we are paying to defend them when that so rich and we are not, what do we get in return? Seems a one sided part for Allies, tired of us running out, making do, gaping kit for nothing in return and the cost footed by the few left who work in the UK.
Every one takes from us but give nothing back, while robbing us on oil prices as it suits them, just look at the state of our armed forces as run down as it gets yet here we are playing on the world stag, why? apart from nice words we get nothing for it.
We can not afford it,
Jordan is actively defending Cyprus alongside RAF jets.
*Apologies, I see you said Gulf.
For a country that apparently doesn’t have any GBAD and is apparently completely vulnerable to Russian cruise missile attacks we seem to have alot of ground based air defences.
It’s almost like everything that was on the internet was a load of shite and the armed forces did not go around broadcasting systems it had for operational security.
Sky Sabre first class
Typhoon first class
F35 first class
Rapid sentry first class
Stormer first class
Lynx wildcat first class
Crowsnest first class
Star streak first class
Type 45 first class
Most of these systems are preset in numbers as well.
There are also indications in the press that the Uk is operating a region wide air defences network system incorporating land sea and air units which sounds like a fore runner for project DIAMOND. T45, typhoon, Crowsnest, wildcat and Rapid Sentry all said to be on the same system in the eastern Med.
what numbers, please enlighten me, i like numbers
7 skysabre systems with 9 planned
11 Rapid Sentry systems based on the number of radars ordered
129 Typhoons
47 F35’s
62 Lynx wildcat
6 T45
64 Stormer
84 Starstreak SP HVM
We are hardly defenceless
how many work, how many are depolyed which one can shoot down balistic missiles. one skysabre is at the rsa/one in the Faulklands/one in cyprus. 4 left for the entire UK, they short/meduim range,
On the plus side rapid sentry is a proven capability alongside the experienced gained by the RAF Reg.
We’re great at defending point targets.
The wider population or a theatre of war, however…
And yet we have no air defence for ourselves 🙄
Clearly we do as less than 10% of what we have has been sent to the gulf and that’s quite a lot.
10 %, are those your own numbers or a rose tinted press release from the MOD, way more than 10% being used and 50% of type 45s do not work, There were 5 Sky Sabre sets, two are deplyed to the gulf one in the Faulklands, some more on order, happy to be corrected but i do not see it at 10% did Racheal Reeves do the maths?
Five sets? Are you kidding?
The RA has just two ‘fighting batteries’ of Sky Sabre, or about 6 deployable launchers.
its has so i was told 5 deployable units as in complete command, tracking, launchers. but more than one launcher per unit/set. i knw more were ordered but what was ordered is vague and not yet in service.
I recall 6 more launchers were ordered, or that was what was reported. As you say, no stories about deliveries yet.
6 launchers, is that deployable units or just six more launchers no command unit or tracker, the story was very vague. I had the idea it was launchers only not command and trackers, after all you can link launchers to together. It was an MOD press release that was made look like more than it was, to me a launcher is just that a missile container not an complete airdefence system.
Isn’t it two batteries, four fire groups, nine launchers? Still pathetic.
The United Kingdoms sky Sabre system comprises the following units
11 radars,
15 SAMOC ( command units)
21 launchers in inventory
People need to stop banging on about batteries
ok how many air defence syetems can all those make then ie what numbers are say one complete deployable unit? as that is were the confussion is, ie what is a complete unit made up of?.
They make 9 systems. 9 separately deployable systems which can each control anything from three to six launchers.
Each system has a single radar and there are two spare that were also used for testing development so 11 radars. 9 systems, 7 available now rising to 9 soon.
See numbers above
We can not protect the UK, we do not have the kit even if all forever broken TYPE 45’s were working, we could not deply what remains of thour Army as we do not have enough air defence left in the UK, i think some on here are wearing rose tinted glasses
What are we defending the UK from? What weapons do you think that Russia has that can reach us?
Avangard, Oreshnik, R29 Vysota, Shtil,RS-24 YAR, RS26, SS-20, RS-28, SS-25, SS-27,SS-27.
FYI some of those are duplicates (Eg SS-27 is RS-24) and some (eg SS-20) are long out of service.