GKN Aerospace has completed the engineering, manufacture and full prototype integration of the wing and control-surface structures for BAE Systems’ Brontanax uncrewed Collaborative Combat Aircraft. The British-designed aircraft was unveiled at the Farnborough International Airshow, and the prototype structures were built at GKN Aerospace’s composite design and assembly facility in Cowes, Isle of Wight, while the aircraft itself was developed at BAE’s Warton site in Lancashire.
GKN said the parts it supplied include the prototype’s wings, vertical fins and control surfaces, and described them as flight-ready components. The company said the work moved from a clean-sheet design on an accelerated timeline, indicating that the programme has advanced beyond concept art and full-scale mock-up into a flight-ready prototype supply chain.
BAE Systems has presented Brontanax as the UK’s first British-designed uncrewed CCA and a companion platform for crewed fighters. The programme is aligned with the UK’s Storm Fighter requirement for collaborative combat aircraft, and BAE has been described as having built a pre-series, pre-production prototype rather than only a demonstrator.
Public information does not provide performance specifications, contract value or a confirmed first-flight date. However, the reported delivery of composite flight structures and the reference to planned 2027 flight testing suggest the programme is moving toward near-term test activity.