The UK is recycling old jets to build its next-generation Tempest fighter

The British Ministry of Defence is grinding up old fighter jets and using what’s left to build its next-generation Tempest fighter. While this approach might sound crazy, it actually reduces the country’s reliance on foreign-sourced materials and points toward some incredible new ways to recycle old aircraft. 

Introduced as a response to lingering concerns about how the global market for vital materials could be impacted by large-scale war between great powers, this is an area of increasing focus for the Future Combat Air Systems (FCAS) program. The FCAS is Britain’s overarching effort that includes the development of the crewed Tempest fighter.

“Through the expected lifecycle of the U.K.’s FCAS, we expect access to critical materials to be challenged, as global supply chains become increasingly disrupted and competitive. In parallel, there is a societal need to make the best use of the raw materials we already have,” explained the Future Combat Air System’s Sustainability Requirements Manager, identified only as “Squadron Leader Rob.”

To achieve this, rather than just scrapping old Tornado GR4s that were retired from active service in 2019 and then sourcing all the high-quality raw materials needed for the new Tempest fighter program from foreign countries, the U.K. will simply yank parts off of those old Tornados and feed them into an industrial grinder to produce a powder, called “feedstock.” This powder can then be used by industrial 3D printers to produce new components for new fighters. 

The British Ministry of Defense, is collaborating with Rolls Royce in the effort.

In testing so far, Tornado engine compressor blades, which include a high quantity of titanium, were cleaned, ground up, and then used to 3D print a new nosecone and compressor blades for “Orpheus” the small engine Rolls Royce has in testing to mature technologies for the Tempest program.

With its new 3D-printed component, the Orpheus engine was then put through the wringer and managed to pass all suitability and safety tests. 

“Tornado 2 Tempest is a bold, exciting and innovative project and a demonstration of how excellent collaboration between the MOD, industry and SME can deliver sustainable and technologically advanced solutions,” said Andrew Eady, Rolls-Royce Vice President for FCAS Sustainability.

Related: British F-35s faced off against their American counterparts in rare showdown

This same recycling and 3D-printing process can be used for steel and aluminum components as well, which would further reduce waste, and allow the U.K. to have to mine and process fewer raw materials in the future. 

“Not only can this solution reduce the costs and burden of sourcing critical and high-value metals, but it can also produce components that are lighter, strong and longer lasting than those made through traditional forging techniques, thereby further enhancing the MOD’s overall sustainability and effectiveness,” Thomas Powell, DRDT’s Strategic & Submarine Recycling Senior Commercial Manager, said in a Rolls Royce press release.

Construction of the first Tempest technology demonstrator began last year, and the U.K., Italy, and Japan, which are also partner countries in the program, are hoping to see the aircraft make its first test flight in 2026, with the goal of getting these fighters into service by 2035. 

Read more from Sandboxx News

• The Pentagon is getting a counter-drone task force as threats from unmanned aerial systems increase
• Does the CIA have its own fire department?
• Russia is sending ‘hundreds’ of its war wounded for treatment in North Korea, ambassador says
• Lockheed Martin’s upcoming AGM-158 XR stealth missile is scary
• XP-79: The US fighter built to ram enemy bombers