Britain’s Tempest warplane heads for a dogfight with an EU rival

FOR A FEW days, the ExCeL convention centre in east London was transformed into a Disneyland for arms dealers. On September 10th-13th Defence & Security Equipment International (DSEI), one of the world’s largest weapons bazaars, filled its cavernous halls with enough tanks, missiles and drones to invade a small country. Towering above all of these was a full-sized model of a sleek warplane with sprawling wings and a nose like a bulbous arrowhead.

The aircraft in question, Tempest, is to be the jewel in the crown of Britain’s £23bn ($29bn) defence industry. In two decades Britain’s Eurofighter Typhoons will be retiring and the fifth-generation F-35 Lightning will be creaking at the joints. If Britain wants to keep flying world-class warplanes, and to retain the expertise to build and export them, it must start work now. To that end, in July 2018 the government announced nearly £2bn of funding over ten years as part of its Combat Air Strategy.