DVD 2026: UK announces first Recce Strike contracts

The United Kingdom announced its first acquisition steps for the British Army's Recce Strike concept at DVD 2026. Three British small businesses received contracts worth a combined £16 million for more than 1,000 small reconnaissance drones, while Tekever was selected to bring 24 longer-endurance AR5 aircraft into service by 2029. Separate contracts went to MBDA and Thales to study a beyond-line-of-sight anti-armor weapon. The layered sensor-and-strike approach will be connected through Project Asgard, backed by £370 million, but the exploratory weapon contracts do not yet commit the Army to a production system.