Royal Air Force News Friday, January 12, 2024 P9
News
Vet Dusty goes Nuclear
PRIME MINISTER Rishi Sunak checks out a Typhoon from a Voyager tanker over Scotland during a visit to RAF Lossiemouth.
VETERAN FIREFIGHTER John ‘Dusty’ Miller was presented with his Nuclear Test Medal at a surprise party organised by pals and RAF Coningsby station chiefs. The 86-year-old airman, who served at the Lincolnshire base, took part in the UK’s H-Bomb test programme on Christmas Island in the South Pacific in the 1960s. He is among an estimated 20,000 Forces personnel who qualify for the medal, introduced last year by Veterans Minister Johnny Mercer.
Dusty thought he was attending a veterans get-together at Tattershall Lakes Country Park when Coningsby Station Commander Gp Capt Billy Cooper stepped in to present the award. Dusty said: “I’m very grateful to the Station Commander for taking the time to present my medal. “I’m also proud to recognise the 20,000 or so other people, some of whom are sadly no longer with us, who were also entitled to this award.”
Tempest treaty lift WORLD FIRST: Sixth-generation Tempest will feature AI-driven weapons systems and interactive cockpit
Tracey Allen THE UK has signed an international treaty with Italy and Japan to develop the supersonic sixth generation Tempest fighter jet in Britain The move marks a key stage in the Global Combat Air Programme and will see British aerospace giants BAE and MBDA working alongside Italian firm Leonardo and Japan’s Mitsubishi and hundreds of tech organisations. Launched in 2018, the Tempest programme has received more than £2.5 billion in UK government and industry funding, and is expected to take to the
skies in 2035 ahead of the planned drawdown of the Typhoon Force. Already in development, the cutting-edge aircraft will be equipped with stealth capability and radar providing 10,000 times more data than existing systems, a spokesman said. Defence Secretary, Grant Shapps added: “Our world-leading combat aircraft programme aims to be crucial to global security and we continue to make hugely positive
progress towards delivery of the new jets to our respective air forces in 2035. The UK-based headquarters will also see us make important decisions collaboratively and at pace, working with our close partners Italy and Japan, and our impressive defence industries, to deliver an outstanding aircraft.” Among the innovations planned to make Tempest a world-leading platform are an AI-driven weapons systems and an interactive cockpit which allows pilots
to take control using hand gestures and augmented reality displays. Among the world firsts are an efficient electric starter generator producing huge amounts of power and open system software architecture allowing rapid changes in capability to suit any mission. A spokesman for UK Defence added: “This is a crucial programme for the future of stability in the Euro Atlantic, IndoPacific and wider global security. “The Global Combat Air Programme is a strong example of the UK’s global leadership in developing next-generation military capability to deter and defeat threats to the UK and our allies.”