Work to test elements of the Tempest demonstrator is now under way, including sled testing of the aircraft's ejector seat system. (BAE Systems)

Testing of components and systems intended for the Tempest Future Combat Air System (FCAS) Flying Technology Demonstrator (FTD) is accelerating at BAE Systems' Warton site and at the facilities of partners companies around the UK.

Work on the demonstrator was announced in July 2022 by UK Defence Secretary Ben Wallace, with a declaration of intent for it to fly “within five years”.

Industry executives and senior Royal Air Force (RAF) officers working on the demonstrator told Janes and other defence media on 13 June that a big element of this early effort was to prove the validity of the digital models being used in its development. This is seen as a key component in the drive to ensure production of Tempest for the RAF can begin by 2035.

A US Air Force F-35A flies over the Toronto waterfront during the 2021 Canadian International Air Show. (US Air Force)

The Canadian Department of National Defence (DND), which is reviewing its six-year-old defence policy, has received more than 1,500 public comments as part of the process, according to a DND spokesperson.

The DND is “taking into account these submissions in crafting” a defence policy update (DPU), the spokesperson told Janes on 8 June. The DPU “is currently under way and we look forward to releasing it in due course”.

The Canadian government announced in April 2022 that it was launching a defence policy review to determine whether the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) is adequately sized, equipped, and funded in light of Russia's invasion of Ukraine. Canada's current defence policy, titled ‘Strong, Secure, Engaged', was released in 2017.

As part of the review, members of the Canadian public had from 9 March to 30 April 2023 to submit their views. After the DPU is completed, the DND intends to publish a “summary of the themes and concepts that were heard”.

The US Capitol building in Washington, DC. (Janes/Marc Selinger)

The US Professional Services Council (PSC) is urging its member companies to prepare for the possibility that the US government could delay payments to contractors if it fails to resolve its debt limit crisis.

Contractors should stockpile cash and consult with their credit providers to ensure they can continue operations if the government suspends payments, David Berteau, PSC president and CEO, told reporters on 25 May.

The government is expected to run out of money in early June unless its borrowing authority is increased. While President Joe Biden and his Democratic allies in Congress support raising the USD31.4 trillion debt ceiling without conditions, congressional Republicans insist that a ceiling increase be coupled with cuts in non-defence spending. The Biden administration and congressional leaders have been trying to negotiate a compromise but have yet to reach a deal.

“We want this to be done as soon as possible,” Karine Jean-Pierre, White House press secretary, told reporters on 25 May. “That's why the negotiators have been working around the clock – 24 hours, practically – to get this done.”