BAE Techniques, Leonardo UK and Parker Meggitt have been awarded a £453 million contract for the provision of ECRS Mk2 AESA radars for RAF Typhoons, although at current solely 40 jets shall be upgraded.
The lengthy awaited ECRS Mk2 contract award has come after a few years of improvement, with the primary Hurricane fitted with the brand new energetic electronically scanned array (AESA) radar taking to the sky in September 2024.
ECRS Mk2 (European Frequent Radar System Mk2) will change the present Captor-M radar, which is a mechanically scanned pulse doppler radar. Improvement of the ECRS Mk2 is led by BAE Techniques and Leonardo UK, and the RAF is presently the one confirmed buyer – although it appears possible Italy may even go for this variant because of the involvement of Leonardo. Different operators use both the ECRS Mk0 (Kuwait and Qatar) or plan to make use of the ECRS Mk1 (Germany and Spain). These three separate, although associated, designs are referred to collectively as Captor-E.
UK defence information as MoD awards BAE Techniques £453.5m for full manufacturing of ECRS Mk2 AESA radar for 40 RAF Typhoons. Been some time coming however will ship extremely superior radar & crucially, leading edge EW/digital assault capabilities to Hurricane fleet – bridging hole to GCAP #avgeek pic.twitter.com/WqF5zPTYWZ
— Tim Robinson (@RAeSTimR) January 22, 2026
In comparison with the Mk1, the Mk2 consists of rather more refined digital warfare (EW) and digital assault (EA) performance and offers the Hurricane with a complicated jamming functionality with out requiring any further tools. Utilizing over 1,000 electronically steered transmit/obtain modules, the radar could be directed to scan totally different sections of the sky or floor inside milliseconds. The radar scan space can be narrowed or widened as required, with an out there steerable vary in extra of 180 levels.
The addition of an AESA radar will lastly carry the Hurricane nearer in line to its most direct competitor, the Dassault Rafale, which has had an AESA out there in frontline service for over a decade. Many older U.S. plane, just like the F-15 and F-16, have additionally obtained AESA radars in improve applications.
USAF is on observe to finish its #F15 Radar Modernization Program in 2024. F-15 RMP replaces the F15E’s APG-70 radar with the APG-82v1 Lively Electronically Scanned Array thus pure fleeting the F-15 (E & EX) enterprise with the extra succesful AESA radar. pic.twitter.com/NdiUsiIopv
— AirPower | MIL-STD (@AirPowerNEW1) October 27, 2023
40 of the RAF’s Hurricane FGR4s shall be outfitted with the brand new radar, all of them being probably the most lately delivered Tranche 3 plane. Whether or not a follow-on contract will see the radar roll out among the many older however extra quite a few Tranche 2 plane is but to be confirmed. Alternatively, there have lengthy been robust campaigns endorsing a brand new order of Tranche 4 or Tranche 5 airframes for the RAF to bolster the UK’s fight air power and bridge the hole between the Hurricane and the forthcoming GCAP fighter. The small variety of Tranche 1 plane nonetheless in service with 1435 Flight on the Falkland Islands wouldn’t be in line for an improve.
UK Secretary of State for Defence John Healey, who visited a Leonardo facility in Scotland alongside Douglas Alexander, Secretary of State for Scotland, to mark the contract award stated: “Our Hurricane fleet is the spine of UK and NATO air defence, operated throughout Europe by the Royal Air Pressure and our allies to guard our skies and safety. Because the threats we face improve, and as Russian drones proceed to strike Ukraine and violate NATO airspace, this cutting-edge radar functionality will maintain Britain safe at residence and robust overseas for a few years to come back.”
He added: “In Edinburgh and throughout the UK, we’re backing greater than 20,000 expert employees on the Hurricane programme who guarantee our RAF stays prepared to guard Britain. Our authorities has backed their high-skilled work with greater than £650 million of funding this week alone, securing British jobs and making defence an engine for progress in Scotland and past. This huge workforce shall be sustained for years following the largest fighter jet exports deal in a technology, price £8 billion which we secured with Türkiye in October.”
Alexander celebrated the very fact Scottish trade is concerned with the radar’s improvement and manufacturing, noting that it “reveals simply how important Scottish experience is to the UK’s nationwide safety and why Scotland is globally recognised as a centre of defence excellence”.
Mark Hamilton, Managing Director of Electronics UK, Leonardo, stated: “ECRS Mk2 isn’t simply an distinctive radar – it’s outfitted with superior digital surveillance and digital assault capabilities which can make RAF’s Typhoons stronger in opposition to their adversaries, adapting to new and unpredictable threats. This contract secures 300 extremely expert jobs at Leonardo’s Edinburgh website, and 100 at our Luton website. In addition to supporting over 71 UK-based suppliers, we hope ECRS Mk2 will see wider adoption by different Hurricane export customers given its superior capabilities in opposition to present and future threats.”
Sluggish Tempo
The contract award is predicted however welcome information for Leonardo UK, who’ve harassed their ongoing frustrations with an absence of orders and contracts from the UK Authorities earlier than the discharge of the delayed Defence Funding Plan (DIP). Whereas the mixing of the radar with the Hurricane is managed by BAE Techniques, the radar parts themselves are manufactured by Leonardo UK. Sadly, uncertainty over the New Medium Helicopter contract which might maintain Leonardo’s main helicopter manufacturing facility in Yeovil continues with none information.
In the end, the procurement of ECRS Mk2 has been a finished deal for a while, and this new contract is just one other step alongside a street already partially traveled. Even so long as six years in the past, contract awards of over £300 million to help the event of ECRS Mk2 had been being celebrated. Extra lately, in 2023, the official RAF account marked an £870 million contract award.
An £870 million five-year contract awarded to @BAESystemsAir and @Leonardo_UK to improve radar capabilities on RAF Typhoons, becoming the fighter jets with one of many world’s most superior radars – the European Frequent Radar System (ECRS) Mk2.Full Story: pic.twitter.com/gGw5N1IDDN
— Royal Air Pressure (@RoyalAirForce) July 4, 2023
The Hurricane’s mechanically scanned radar is overdue for substitute, and as such any step in direction of that objective is welcome, however it could be a mistake to see this contract for instance of improve work continuing at a tempo that’s near what can be required underneath what the UK Authorities has termed a ‘struggle footing’.
Lengthy Time period Help Contract
Including to the sum of £453 million awarded for the ECRS Mk2 contract, an extra £205 million was lately awarded to QinetiQ for a five-year contract extension offering long-term specialist engineering help for the Hurricane, together with work to keep up and improve its weapon methods. Mixed with the 1,300 jobs supported by the ECRS Mk2, this contract sees round 1,500 expert jobs in complete throughout the nation sustained for years to come back.
We’ve been awarded a five-year £205 million contract by the @DefenceHQ to ship engineering companies for the @RoyalAirForce ‘s Hurricane.
Discover out extra 👉
#RoyalAirForce #TyphoonAircraft #UKDefence pic.twitter.com/MXKtcc6m3I
— QinetiQ Group (@QinetiQ) January 19, 2026
Luke Pollard, Minister of State for Defence Readiness and Trade, stated: “Our Hurricane fighter fleet is essential in how we maintain Britain safe at residence and robust overseas, deploying the world over in help of our allies. By means of our continued funding within the Hurricane programme and final 12 months’s £8 billion Hurricane export cope with Türkiye, we’re exhibiting how defence is an engine for progress supporting prosperity throughout the nation.”
