Germany’s long-running search for a Tornado replacement, using unmanned platforms for ASW and evaluating kit in the time of COVID-19

In this episode of the Weekly Defence Podcast, we discuss the suitability of unmanned platforms for the anti-submarine warfare mission, look at Germany’s long -running attempts to find a replacement of its ageing Tornado fleet and hear how the US Army is using video demonstrations to assess equipment.

Newsround (00:39)

In the news this week, Germany plans to extend procurement within the future soldier programme beyond the end of this year, when deliveries were scheduled to finish.  

There’s plenty of life left in the Cold War-era B-1 Lancer bomber, as the US Air Force aims to upgrade a squadron to carry some of the most advanced long-range munitions in the US inventory.

Saab has conducted a landmark flight trial of its X-band AESA radar, which is planned as an upgrade on Gripen C/D aircraft in service with five air forces worldwide. 

In the Middle East, Iran claims to have developed two new 3D, long-range, phased-array radars for air defence. 

News focus:

News Editor Ben Vogel reports on the Libyan National Army finding a dismantled fuselage from a Polish-made Warmate loitering munition in the northwest of the country. 

He considers how these incidents reflect a broader failure of export controls and how that the UN arms embargo on both sides in the Libyan civil war appears porous and almost non-existent. 

Air Editor Tim Martin dives into another side-effect of the current pandemic, as the US Army has approved for the Future Tactical UAS (FTUAS) competitors to video test flights of their systems as an alternative to in-person review. 

Deep Dive – Germany’s Tornado fleet replacement (12:34)

Tim Martin is on the line with Torben Schütz, Research Fellow for Armament Policy at the German Council on Foreign Relations (DGAP) Security and Defence Programme, to understand more about the politics involved in the replacement of Germany’s Tornado fleet. 

Interview: SEA (24:02)

Senior Editor - Naval Richard Thomas speaks to business development director at SEA Peter Hodgkinson about how the proliferation of submarines in the world’s oceans calls for a rapid response in the development of anti-submarine warfare (ASW) capabilities and the role that unmanned platforms can play.

Music and sound mixing by Fred Prest