British English: A Royal Air Force (RAF) Reaper UAV (unmanned aerial vehicle) from No. 39 Squadron RAF, makes its approach to Kandahar Airfield in Afghanistan following a mission. The aircraft, armed with Paveway bombs and Hellfire missiles, is remotely controlled from Kandahar for takeoff and landing and by British troops in Nevada, USA during the actual sortie.
A set of defence co-operation contracts, worth £120 million, for the early phase of a joint development of Unmanned Combat Air System (UCAS) between the UK and French governments have been awarded today in Paris. A UCAS capability would, by the 2030’s, be able to undertake sustained surveillance, mark targets, gather intelligence, deter adversaries and carry out strikes in hostile territory. The contracts will underpin a two-year Future Combat Air System (FCAS) Feasibility Phase programme, and will involve six industry partners exploring concepts and options for the potential collaborative acquisition of a UCAS in the future. The contracts award was jointly announced by Bernard Gray, the Ministry of Defence's Chief of Defence Materiel, and his counterpart, Laurent Collet-Billon, head of the French Directorate General of Armaments.