To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 19 September 2024 to Question 2108 on Future Combat Air System, whether the £1.3 billion represents the full expected allocation for the (a) Global Combat Air Programme and (b) Future Combat Air System as at the start of this financial year.
Answered on
15 October 2024
The £1.3 billion figure provided on 19 September 2024 to Question 2106 accounts for the Government funding for Future Combat Air System/Global Combat Air Programme in the current financial year.
All of the £1.3 billion of spend this financial year was planned in the last financial year.
The £1.3 billion of spend this financial year is on the Future Combat Air System (FCAS) programme, the majority of which is for Global Combat Air Programme (GCAP) activity. At the start of this financial year, it was expected that the Ministry of Defence would spend up to ~£1.46 billion on FCAS/GCAP. The forecast was reduced to £1.3 billion due to revised estimates of programme activity from industry throughout the year.