05 Jan 24. Defence to hold first session on future aviation capabilities. On Tuesday 9 January, at 10.30, the Defence Committee will hold its first evidence session in its inquiry into future aviation capabilities. The session will focus primarily on the Global Combat Air Programme (GCAP) – a joint programme of collaboration between the UK, Italy and Japan creating the next generation of combat aircraft – and the UK’s aviation industrial strategy.
The Committee will hear from witnesses from think tanks RAND Europe and RUSI, as well as industry experts with experience at Eurofighter GmbH, which co-ordinates the production of the Eurofighter Typhoon, and the Organisation for Joint Armament Cooperation (OCCAR), an intergovernmental organisation that manages complex, cooperative defence equipment programmes.
The Committee is likely to discuss the absence of cost estimates for GCAP. Members are likely to ask about the structural difficulties that plagued the Typhoon programme and ask what lessons can be learned. The session is likely to cover the Government’s progress in implementing a “Team UK” approach to exports, as outlined in the Defence and Security Industrial Strategy.
10.30, Tuesday 9 January:
- Lucia Retter – Research Leader, RAND Europe
- Trevor Taylor – Director of the Defence, Industries & Society Programme, RUSI
11.30:
- Brian Phillipson – former CEO/ COO Eurofighter GmbH (virtual)
- Tim Rowntree – former Director OCCAR