RUSI Defence Systems

A Fourth F-35 Variant?

Andrew Hartland

With an inherently high thrust-to-weight ratio and modified digital flight control system, an F-35 variant could operate off the Queen Elizabeth class carriers with fewer penalties to the baseline F-35A design than the current F-35B and hence fewer performance trade-offs

Counter-UAS – a ‘Wicked’ Problem?

Adam Coffey

Finding, striking, jamming, blocking, sustaining, and generally being disruptive, are all now realistic outputs from UAS. Given these multiple potential and proven uses for UAS even by non-state actors, the military conversation has very much moved on to how to counter them.

The European Fighter Cooperation Question: How Many UK F-35s?

Justin Bronk

The ongoing Combat Air Strategy under development within the Ministry of Defence faces a difficult choice, with significant capability, industrial and geopolitical cost trade-offs involved. The F-35 is at the centre of this dilemma.

UK Basing Posture Renews Naval Capability

James Shinnie

With new UK facilities opening in Oman and Bahrain, an examination of these future bases offers helpful insights into the shape of UK strategic international engagements post-Brexit.

Networked Air Warfare – Where Next?

Andrew Hartland

Cross-platform networking architectures, coupled with innovative UAV design concepts, could offer a more efficient unmanned alternative to expensive fast jets.

The lights are going out all over Europe

Joss Meakins

The threat of significant Russian cyberattacks against Western energy infrastructure is an increasingly clear and present danger

China and the Globalisation of Armed Drone Strikes

Scott N. Romaniuk & Tobias Burgers

China’s rapid progress in developing and exporting armed and unarmed Unmanned Aerial Vehicles has significant implications and is undercutting long- running US efforts to control the spread of this technology around the world

SpaceX Falcon Heavy: That’s No Moon … It’s A Tesla!

Alexandra Stickings

Taiwan’s Illustrative Minehunter Troubles

Shang-Su Wu

Taiwan has had industrial financial viability problems with the construction of new minehunting vessels. These problems are indicative of the difficulties Taipei faces in its indigenous military modernisation efforts aimed at ameliorating its military inferiority vis-à-vis China.

Potential Chinese Railgun Testing Illustrates the US Navy’s Biggest Long-Term Challenge

Justin Bronk

Pictures of what appears to be a test installation of a naval railgun on a PLA Navy landing ship suggest China is moving forward with sea trials of a weapon which can threaten all Western surface assets. At the start of a huge ship-building plan, China is ideally placed to capitalise on this technology.

Unmanned Systems and the Re-emergence of Naval Expeditionary Capabilities

George Galdorisi

As part of a renewed focus on naval expeditionary operations, the United States, United Kingdom and other nations are testing a variety of unmanned systems to enhance the capabilities and cost effectiveness of amphibious forces against future global threats

Defining Integration: UK and US RC-135 Co-Basing

Mark Cramer

The RAF’s acquisition of the RC-135 ‘Airseeker’ represented a deliberate effort by both the RAF and US Air Force to set the conditions for further integration. The current lack of greater progress on this vision will represent a lost opportunity for both air forces that will only serve to drive up operating costs.

There and Back Again: A Rocket’s Tale

Alexandra Stickings

The regularity with which SpaceX is landing and re-using first-stage rocket launchers has significant implications both for increasing access to space and potential defence applications

RDS Special: Formations and Units involved in ‘Zapad-2017’ Russian-Belarussian strategic exercises

Igor Sutyagin

Initial analysis suggests that the recent ‘Zapad-2017’ joint strategic exercises of Russia and Belarus (14-20 September) justified the concerns of external observers about the scale and content of the exercises, as well as constituting a possible Russian violation of the Vienna Document provisions of 2011

Integrated Battle Command System: Prospects and Existential Complexities

Debalina Ghoshal

Despite delays and continuing software problems, the US Army’s planned integrated air and missile defence command construct remains a priority for the Pentagon as it looks to proliferating threats in the coming decades