The Royal Navy plans to demonstrate an autonomous jet-powered aircraft operating from its aircraft carriers by the end of 2026 as part of its development of a manned-unmanned carrier air wing.
The Ministry of Defence (MOD) issued a Request for Information on October 3, 2025, for Project VANQUISH, seeking industry proposals for a Fixed Wing Short Take Off and Landing Autonomous Collaborative Platform (FW STOL ACP). The air vehicle must embark and operate autonomously from a Queen Elizabeth Class carrier, achieving launches and recoveries without catapult or arrested recovery systems while maintaining credible payload and endurance capabilities.
The aircraft is required to be jet turbine-powered and capable of high subsonic speeds. According to the MOD, the platform must demonstrate an exploitation pathway for intelligence, surveillance, reconnaissance, strike operations, and air-to-air refueling missions in support of carrier strike operations.
The project falls under the “Tier 2 attritable” classification, indicating the platform will be designed as a lower-cost system acceptable for deployment in higher-risk operational environments. The MOD states the system must complement F-35B Lightning operations as part of the carrier air wing, with the technical demonstration intended to inform capability development and procurement decisions for the early 2030s.
Project VANQUISH builds on previous autonomous aircraft trials from Royal Navy carriers. In November 2023, General Atomics successfully conducted short take-off and landing operations with its Mojave unmanned aerial system from HMS Prince of Wales, according to Army Recognition, marking the first such trial from a non-catapult-equipped carrier.
The RFI establishes an estimated contract value of US$12.4 million (£10 million) excluding value-added tax, with a potential contract period from April 2026 to December 2027. The MOD specifies a nominal target delivery date by the end of 2026, with an 18-month delivery window from that date under consideration.
The deaadline for responses to the RFI is November 14, 2025, with clarification questions accepted until October 24, 2025.
The autonomous platform requirement aligns with the Maritime Aviation Transformation initiative, which seeks to integrate autonomous and crewed aviation into networked carrier strike operations.
The MOD said the technical demonstration will generate data and evidence to inform the maritime requirement for prospective procurement of a FW STOL ACP capability from the early 2030s. The project is described as separate from but coherent with existing Carrier Strike Airborne Early Warning RFIs issued in April 2025.
