Babcock and BAE Systems Achieve Milestone in Five-Year Programme

Babcock announced on 23 October that it has reached a milestone in its five-year contract with the UK Ministry of Defence’s (MoD) International Guns, Missiles and Rockets (IGMR) project team to deliver a rejuvenated 4.5in Mk8 Mod 1 Medium Calibre Gun programme for the Royal Navy.

Over the course of the contract, which will implement general performance improvements and address equipment obsolescence, Babcock will drive an increase in reliability and availability of weapons systems. Benefitting from significant investment, the Mk8 equipment is planned for use across numerous Royal Navy platforms, with potential for deployment on future MoD contracts.

Highlighting a significant milestone for the programme, Babcock – working in collaboration with BAE Systems – has delivered a number of design interventions ahead of successfully completing a series of live firing trials with QinetiQ, which mark the first land-based firing of a fully turreted 4.5in gun since 2001.

Conducted over a five-day period and utilising multiple land and sea sites, various range, accuracy and altitudes were successfully tested. Results will now be applied to the programme as the contract progresses. “The team realised a key milestone with the live firing trials. Establishing and delivering on a suite of well-defined KPIs [key performance indicators] will ensure the programme is set up for success as the Mk8 contract progresses towards an effective, reliable and cost-effective solution for the Ministry of Defence,” commented Babcock’s Director Mission Systems, Martin Laity.