The UK and Japan have signed a deal to jointly conduct research on sensor technology to help fighter jets detect lethal threats.

The universal radio frequency sensor technology, known as “JAGUAR”, could enable jets to better detect future threats from air, land and sea, quickly and accurately locating targets and denying surveillance technology operated by adversaries.

With joint work on the project scheduled to start in April, JAGUAR is expected to create 75 jobs across the UK, including 40 highly skilled engineering jobs at Leonardo’s Edinburgh site.

Designing, building and evaluating the JAGUAR system will take around five years, involving input from Leonardo UK and Japanese industry.

Two demonstrators will be built within the project, one in each country, with the work and learning shared to maximise national expertise.

Chair and CEO of Leonardo UK, Norman Bone said: “As the UK’s combat air electronics champion and a founding member of Tempest, we’re keen to work with our international allies where their industry has similarly advanced capabilities, bringing together the best of both partners.

“Japan has a strong and growing combat air industry which is a natural fit for Leonardo. Under JAGUAR, our highly-skilled scientists and engineers based across the UK will work with their Japanese counterparts to advance technology that will benefit both of our nation’s future combat air endeavours.”

www.leonardocompany.com