Royal Navy progresses towards Project Vanquish demo from aircraft carrier

- Project Vanquish is the Royal Navy’s latest attempt to prove that jet-powered Autonomous Collaborative Platforms can launch from QEC carriers without catapults. It’s not just about flying; it’s about the digital architecture of the Hybrid Air Wing. Commodore Bolton’s pushing for a “Maritime Fighting Web” to coordinate these attritable Tier 2 ACPs with F-35Bs. This is pure engineering bravado: creating a crewed/uncrewed kill chain via common digital standards under the Pantheon umbrella. We’re talking high-subsonic endurance and precise navigation over the sea. If the AI handles the targeting and the network stays resilient, we’re looking at a future where the Fleet Air Arm is largely uncrewed by 2040. It’s a bold bet on autonomy, assuming the code doesn’t crash before takeoff.