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The UK has announced that the Mosquito Unmanned Combat Aircraft (UCAV) Project will not go beyond the design phase. The Mosquito Project has, (in a sense) been terminated.
With the Mosquito, the first unmanned -fighter aircraft- project of the British Air Force, it was aimed to develop a Loyal Wingman that could act jointly with aircraft such as the F-35, Tempest and Typhoon. The UK had chosen the US company Spirit AeroSystems as the main contractor for the project.
However, the British Ministry of Defense announced today, surprisingly, that the Musquito Project will not go beyond the design phase. Spirit AeroSystems, on the other hand, was aiming to start tests of the Musquito with a full-rate prototype in 2023, under the £30 million contract signed by the British Ministry of Defense last year.
The British Ministry of Defense announced that the decision was taken by mutual agreement with the project partners. The decision reportedly marked a change of direction for the LANCA Concept.
LANCA Concept
The Mosquito Project, which draws attention with its similarity to the "Skyborg" program of the US Air Force, was being developed within the scope of the British Royal Air Force's "Light Affordable New Fighter Aircraft" (LANCA) concept.
Within the scope of the concept, the first aircraft was expected to start flying together with Typhoon and F-35 warplanes at the end of the 2020s. The first unmanned warplane, developed as part of the Mosquito Project, was scheduled to take off before the Tempest, which is expected to enter service in 2035.
The British company Thales UK had previously developed an unmanned aerial vehicle called the Watchkeeper with the Israeli company Elbit Systems. Developed on the Israeli-made Hermes 450 UAV, Watchkeeper is struggling with many problems. Within the scope of the Watchkeeper Project, which has a budget of about two more than planned, 8 UAVs have crashed so far due to various technical reasons.
The last accident happened this year, and a Watchkeeper crashed into the Mediterranean.
On the other hand, the UK has recently had close security and defense relations with Turkiye. British Defense Secretary Ben Wallace visited Baykar last year; while the British Air Force Commander had visited TAI and received information about the produced and ongoing UCAVs.
İngiltere Mosquito İnsansız Savaş Uçağı Projesini Sonlandırdı
İngiltere, Mosquito İnsansız Savaş Uçağı (UCAV) Projesi'nin tasarım aşamasından öteye geçemeyeceğini açıkladı. Mosquito Projesi, bir anlamda sonlandırıldı.
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