Cambridge Aerospace, an rising UK producer, will ship a ‘important quantity’ of its low-cost Skyhammer air defence methods, designed to counter assault drones just like the Shahed 136 at ranges of over 30km.
The announcement was made by the UK Secretary of State for Defence John Healey MP on the opening day of the London Defence Convention, which has taken place at King’s School London every Spring since 2022. Pending contract finalization, the primary items are anticipated to be delivered to the UK Armed Forces as quickly as Could 2026, and all deliveries are as a consequence of be accomplished inside six months. No precise determine has but been publicly confirmed, although Cambridge Aerospace says the deal entails a ‘important quantity’ of methods.
Skyhammer was revealed by Cambridge Aerospace eventually yr’s Defence and Safety Tools Worldwide (DSEI) exhibition, the place the corporate stated the design had gone from the drafting board to the sky in simply solely six weeks. It’s powered to a max pace of 700 kilometres per hour by a jet engine, ground-launched from a tube, and contains a bespoke radar for terminal steering. The system’s first flight occurred within the first half of 2025.
Information from UK’s Cambridge Aerospace which says it will likely be delivering a ‘important quantity’ of low-cost Skyhammer air defence methods to UK MoD from Could. Skyhammer – optimised for counter-Shahed position – has a spread of 30km with a prime pace of 700km/h #avgeek pic.twitter.com/0VXxw8WU9S
— Tim Robinson (@RAeSTimR) April 10, 2026
No precise price per unit for Skyhammer is understood, although representatives of the corporate have urged it is rather equal to the price of a Shahed 136 type drone ($20,000-$50,000). This would seem to make it barely cheaper per spherical than the Martlet missile (in any other case generally known as the Light-weight Multirole Missile or LMM) which is presently being utilized by Wildcat helicopters to counter assault drones within the Japanese Mediterranean.
I simply spoke to their rocket scientist CEO & founder Steven Barrett who stated: “Shahed drones price £20k to £30k…
“Skyhammer is analogous. It’s comparable.”
— Jerome Starkey (@jeromestarkey) April 10, 2026
It is usually akin to a single Superior Precision Kill Weapon System II (APKWS II) spherical, which is present process trials for carriage by the Storm in a counter-drone capability – one thing which we have been among the many first to report on final month. Importantly, the Skyhammer – despite the fact that it’s supposed to be launched from the bottom – beats each the APKWS II and the Martlet in vary functionality. The present air to air weapon utilized by Typhoons and F-35Bs to shoot down drones is the Superior Brief Vary Air to Air Missile (ASRAAM), a world-class air to air missile with a unit price of £200,000 to match.
Storm Noticed Loaded With Rocket Pods for the First Time
An RAF Storm was pictured at BAE Techniques Warton carrying two seven spherical LAU-131 rocket pods, which can be utilized to fireplace APKWS in opposition to floor and, importantly, air targets.
Story:
— The Aviationist (@TheAviationist) March 6, 2026
Healey, the Defence Secretary, acknowledged: “Our authorities backing for Cambridge Aerospace is a main case of a veteran-founded UK defence start-up scaling at tempo to ship new interceptor missiles inside weeks for our Armed Compelled and Gulf companions, and good jobs and safety right here within the UK.”
CEO of Cambridge Aerospace Steven Barrett added: “With aerial threats to the UK and our allies growing by the day, it’s vital that we will defend ourselves successfully. Skyhammer was designed to do precisely that – bringing reasonably priced mass to guard our skies. We welcome the Authorities’s dedication to supporting UK air defence with scalable, sovereign options.”
As famous by Healey, Skyhammer ‘drone killers’ are additionally as a consequence of be equipped to unspecified companions within the Gulf area. The UK has been working carefully with a lot of Gulf states to coordinate defences in opposition to drone and missile assaults by Iran and Iran-backed forces, seeing RAF Storm FGR4 plane deployed to Qatar, and Fast Sentry methods (firing Martlet missiles) deployed to Iraq, Jordan, and Kuwait. Stormer HVM armored automobiles, which may fireplace Martlet missiles or the associated anti-air devoted Starstreak missile, have been stationed in Saudi Arabia since 2022.
Cambridge Aerospace has:
Skyhammer (Left) – Tube-launched subsonic turbojet drone interceptor, Mach 0.7, 30km)
Starhammer (Proper) – Stable rocket, increased finish drone/cruise missile interceptor, Mach 2, 10km). Longer BM succesful model in improvement. pic.twitter.com/z1SjRyiTzT
— Britsky (@TBrit90) April 10, 2026
Cambridge Aerospace additionally has Starhammer within the improvement pipeline, which is designed as a extra conventional level defence floor to air missile for increased tier threats, boasting a prime pace of Mach 2. Anti-ballistic missile (ABM) capabilities are envisioned in future evolutions. The corporate presently helps 125 jobs within the UK, and this deal is predicted to see as many as 50 extra created.
Defence Funding Plan Delays Hit Laborious
The acquisition announcement by the MoD comes whereas the Defence Funding Plan (DIP), promised final autumn by final yr’s Strategic Defence Overview, stays unpublished. Now effectively overdue, many defence funding and procurement selections have been positioned on maintain till it’s finalized. A particular exception needed to be made for the putting of the New Medium Helicopter (NMH) order with Leonardo after the corporate very plainly and straight acknowledged that the delay in awarding a contract was threatening the way forward for its UK operations.
Confronted with questions on the London Defence Convention, Healey didn’t reveal any deliberate date for the DIP to be revealed, however instructed Sky Information “This can be a 10-year plan. It’s necessary we get it proper”. An unnamed official stated that the plan could also be launched in June, however this date is way from assured. Issues are stated to largely come from complicated negotiations between the MoD and the Treasury over the numerous funds required for the mandatory investments.
BREAKING: Finalising the UK’s a lot delayed defence funding plan – which ought to have been launched final autumn however continues to be below wraps – is the Prime Minster’s “highest precedence”, the defence secretary says
— Deborah Haynes (@haynesdeborah) April 10, 2026
Key capabilities addressed by the DIP are anticipated to incorporate the World Fight Air Program (GCAP) fighter, the UK’s F-35 fleet, the Royal Navy’s deliberate Kind 83 air defence destroyers, air to floor weaponry, air defence methods, and a wide range of drone and counter-drone platforms.
Giant and small defence firms are all being hit by the delays, and a quantity have ceased buying and selling amid the tough interval. Director Basic of Make UK Defence Andrew Kinniburgh instructed The Guardian that smaller corporations are “desperately making an attempt to hold on to their individuals and hold their factories alive. The difficulty for them is that they’re simply bleeding money. There’s money out the door day-after-day to feed the infant birds, and so they’re simply on pause.”
