Royal Navy: Crowsnest radar warning system for Merlin helicopters to be scrapped - when is it ending?
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The Crowsnest airborne early warning system is due to be put out of commission by the end of the decade. It is mounted on Merlin Mk 2 helicopters and gives personnel advanced notice of any incoming aerial or surface threats from a long distance away.
The system is used on aircraft during Carrier Strike Group operations and in other scenarios. Mark Francois, Conservative MP for Rayleigh and Wickford, asked when the equipment will be out of service in a parliamentary written question.
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Maria Eagle, minister for defence procurement, responded: “The CROWSNEST programme delivers the Royal Navy's Merlin Mark2 helicopter Airborne Surveillance and Control capability, which includes Airborne Early Warning. There has been no change to the current out of service date, and the planned retirement date remains 31 December 2029, as the capability was not extended in the 2021 Integrated Review.”
Plans were first mooted to move on from the system in February 2024. Then defence minister James Cartlidge said in a parliamentary written question that £425.662m was spent on the programme as of December 31, 2023, which was within the approved whole life budget of £459m.
The UK Defence Journal reports that the decision to scrap the equipment is a strategic shift towards new and advancing technologies. The publication said the Royal Navy will be planning to move these sonars from Merlin helicopters to “Vixen” fixed wing drones. The publication also said that the MoD is seeking information for a range of assisted launch and arrested recover systems for a range of air vehicles.
The First Sea Lord of the Royal Navy, Sir Ben Key, said in a Times article last May that the advance in technology could see un-crewed systems, including drones, taking on a larger role within the force. Autonomous vessels have been tested in the Portsmouth area in the past.
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