Skip to main content

Written question asked by Lord Spellar (Labour) on Friday, 16 January 2026, in the House of Lords. It was due for an answer on Friday, 30 January 2026. It was answered by Lord Coaker (Labour) on Thursday, 29 January 2026 on behalf of the Ministry of Defence.


Military Aircraft: Manufacturing

Question

To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to maintain combat aircraft manufacturing and assembly capacity in the UK.

Answer

The Defence Industrial Strategy recognises combat air as a priority national security sub-sector, requiring a degree of autonomy in the UK. The Defence Industrial Strategy underlines this government's commitment to maintaining sovereign capabilities across the Defence enterprise. The United Kingdom already has a world-class combat air production and manufacturing ecosystem, supported through large-scale international partnerships as well as targeted domestic investment.

Steps taken to maintain this capacity include the Global Combat Air Programme (GCAP), supporting export campaigns of Typhoon aircraft, upgrading our own combat aircraft, and continuing our investment in the global F-35 programme.


Secondary information

Type
Written question
Reference
HL13670
Session
2024-26
Subjects
Manufacturing industries Military aircraft
Link
View this Written question on www.parliament.uk