- Future Offensive Air System
The Future Offensive Air System was a study which sought to replace the
Royal Air Force 's strike capability currently provided by theTornado GR4 . Initial operation capability was expected around2017 . The FOAS was cancelled in June 2005. [cite web| url = http://www.airforce-technology.com/projects/foas/| title = FOAS (Future Offensive Air System), United Kingdom| accessdate = 2008-07-13| year = 2005| work = Air Force Technology| publisher = SPG Media Limited]Cancellation
In March 2005 the UK joined the United States'
Joint-Unmanned Combat Air System programme. [cite news | title = London Puts Foot in J-UCAS Camp | work = Aviation Week & Space Technology | publisher = The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. | page = 20 | date = 2005-03-21 | accessdate = 2006-12-04] In December 2005 the UK government published itsDefense Industrial Strategy , a part of which was the announcement of increased funding for UCAV technology de-risking and development and the funding for a UCAV Technology Demonstrator Program. [cite news | first = Philip | last = Butterworth-Hayes | title = U.K. changes military acquisition strategy | work = Aerospace America | publisher = American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics, Inc. | page = 4 | date = October 2006 | accessdate = 2006-12-04] The2006 USQuadrennial Defense Review stated that the J-UCAS program would be terminated. [cite news | first = Jason | last = Sherman | title = Pentagon Sets Plan For New Bomber, Terminates J-UCAS Program | url = http://www.globalsecurity.org/org/news/2006/060113-j-ucas-terminated.htm | work = Inside The Air Force | publisher = | date = 2006-01-13 | accessdate = 2008-07-13]Options
The capability required may have been provided by any number of systems;
* New build aircraft, for instance theBAE HALO orBAE Replica demonstrator.
* Development of current aircraftndash For example a variant of theEurofighter Typhoon or theF-35 Lightning II .
*Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs)
* Standoff missiles (Storm Shadow ) launched
** from next generation strike aircraft
** possibly from large, cheap non-penetrating aircraft (Airbus A400M )
* Mix of above systemsContractors
Two industry teams were competing for the contract, one led by
BAE Systems and the other byLogicaCMG .
*BAE Systems team
**Alenia Marconi Systems
**Lockheed Martin
**Northrop Grumman
**MBDA
**EADS Astrium
**Royal Military College of Science
*LogicaCMG team
**Raytheon
**QinetiQ
**EADS References
External links
*cite web |url=http://www.mod.uk/dpa/projects/foas.htm |title= UK Defence Procurement Agency specification |archiveurl=http://web.archive.org/web/20050205170536/http://www.mod.uk/dpa/projects/foas.htm |archivedate=2005-02-05
* [http://www.newscientist.com/news/news.jsp?id=ns99993590 New Scientist: Report of BAE Replica programme]
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