UK invests £12 million in a hypersonic missile

The UK has announced a £12 million contract to invest in the development of a hypersonic missile. But with so many glaring capability gaps, this feels like a poorly timed announcement. 

By Sam Cranny-Evans, published on February 17, 2026. 

The UK’s Ministry of Defence (MoD) has awarded a £12 million ($14.4 million/€14.76 million) contract to Warrington-based engineering contractor Amentum UK to advance the UK’s sovereign hypersonic missile capabilities. 

The project, supported by Ebeni and Synthetik, will focus on engineering designs for hypersonic systems capable of operating at extreme speeds and temperatures, according to the February 13 press release. The programme intends to progress these designs through flight testing before adapting them into prototype missiles.

“In this new era of threat, we need a new era for defence. This means moving quicker to develop and buy the cutting-edge technologies our Armed Forces need for modern warfighting,” Minister for Defence Readiness and Industry, Luke Pollard MP, stated. 

Since July 2024, the UK’s hypersonics programme has awarded 22 contracts to 124 suppliers, with a total estimated value of £48 million ($57.6 million/€59.04 million). Over 50% of these suppliers are small and medium enterprises (SMEs). 

The partnership between Amentum, Ebeni, and Synthetik includes reverse mentoring arrangements. These are designed to reduce barriers to entry for smaller businesses and encourage collaborative working across the defence supply chain.

Calibre comment: British defence procurement priorities

The need to develop new technologies and weapon systems is understandable. But the British Army reportedly suffered a humiliating defeat at the hands of Ukrainian drone teams in a 2025 NATO exercise. And the lack of dedicated counter-drone capabilities in that exercise appears to have contributed to the outcome. Yes, you might argue, £12 million would not put a dent in the Army’s requirements, but it would make a start. Especially when budgets are already restricted and there are so many urgent requirements that need to be met. 

There are several other factors to consider with hypersonics, which are listed below. But the fundamental ground truth is that most forces should focus all resources on building their conventional capability before exploring new exotic weapons. 

• Cost: £12 million ($16.31 million/€13.77 million) is a lot to a regular person, but bear in mind that the US Long-Range Hypersonic Weapon is expected to have an all-up round cost in excess of $40 million (£29.44 million/€33.78 million). Development alone will cost hundreds of millions and success is far from guaranteed. The final cost per missile then dictates magazine depth, which is the next factor. 
• Magazine depth: A hypersonic missile will not necessarily create more damage when it hits a target. The higher speeds probably aid in getting a missile through layered air defences, and the increased kinetic energy is valuable against some targets. However, assuming the missile carries the same size warhead as existing cruise missiles – around 400 kg – you still need quite a few to destroy a large target. One might sink a ship or destroy a submarine at port, but for anything else it is likely more than one will be needed. And that includes the quite significant assumption that a warhead weight of 400 kg can be maintained. Most hypersonic designs are quite cramped and limited in terms of space. The crux of the matter is that a force needs magazine depth of all missiles to be credible. 

• Deployment and operations: The final point to make here is that a force needs platforms to deploy its missiles from. As well as the intelligence capacity to generate targets for them. At present, the only RAF aircraft that are meaningfully armed is the Typhoon fleet. The Royal Navy is expected to provide much of the UK’s long-range strike options in the future. But it has a worryingly small fleet of available vessels. The Army could provide land-based strike options, but is limited in size, funding and capability. 

In all, developing hypersonics when there are so many other capabilities that are urgently needed seems to be a risky endeavour – success is far from guaranteed – as well as an opportunity cost. That money could be better spent elsewhere, on air defence, for example. If, however, Europe can present a unified front, its collective magazine depth might present a credible deterrent and the UK’s hypersonics could be valuable in that scenario. But again, that is all far from guaranteed.

Further reading on hypersonic missiles

If you would like to read up on other hypersonic programmes and topics relevant to British defence, check some of our articles below. It really supports what we do, so thank you! 

• UK completes hypersonic propulsion tests – Calibre Defence 
• US approves support for Japan’s hypersonic missile project – Calibre Defence 
• Kratos contracted to increase US hypersonic flight test capability – Calibre Defence
• No Spear 3 for British F-35B before 2030 – Calibre Defence

The lead image shows HMS Astute, a British nuclear attack submarine, launching a Tomahawk cruise missile in 2011. The submarine fleet is one of the few UK assets currently capable of long-range strike. The Royal Navy is meant to provide a lot of those capabilities in the future, but its resources are already stretched. Credit: POA(Phot) Paul Punter/Crown Copyright.