Could This £5 Billion Investment Put Britain at Risk?

Replacing a two-billion-pound warship with a fleet of automated barges sounds like strategic brilliance, until the control link breaks. Mark Urban examines Britain's five-billion-pound gamble on uncrewed warfare, driven by lethal lessons from Ukraine. By dismantling heavy destroyers into specialised robotic networks, military planners aim to cut costs and remove human operators from danger. Yet with legacy piloted jets like the Tempest still taking the lion's share of funding, the armed forces are walking a thin line between modern innovation and operational vulnerability. Produced by Stephanie Bosset #ukdefence #dronewarfare #royalnavy #geopolitics #militarystrategy Read the best of our journalism: https://www.thetimes.com/ Subscribe to the Times Originals YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/subscription_center?add_user=timesoriginals Find us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/timesandsundaytimes/ Find us on X: https://x.com/thetimes Find us on TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@thetimes?lang=en Find us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thetimes/ 0:00 The rise of drone technology 0:56 Lessons from modern warfare 2:11 Cost and capability trade-offs 3:36 Britain's hybrid navy plan 5:59 Challenges in defense industry 7:00 The future of defense spending