MGI Engineering Launches T-022 Vortex, targets UK Storm Fighter requirement

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Image: MGI Engineering

MGI Engineering Ltd has launched the T-022 Vortex, a new autonomous combat aircraft aimed squarely at the UK’s Storm Fighter requirement. The company describes it as Britain’s first Autonomous Collaborative Platform (ACP) of its kind, according to MGI Engineering.

A new benchmark for uncrewed air power

Vortex flies without a pilot, operates intelligently, and works alongside crewed jets as a coordinated team member. Where earlier autonomous platforms traded range for payload, Vortex delivers both at near-supersonic speed.

The aircraft weighs 3,500 kg at maximum take-off, reaches a top speed near Mach 0.85, and flies more than 4,000 kilometres. A Rolls-Royce Orphus engine, or comparable powerplant, generates 12 to 16 kilonewtons of thrust. Vortex carries up to 1,000 kg across four weapon or sensor stations, with unit costs ranging from £3 million to £6 million.

Built for manned-unmanned teaming

MGI engineered Vortex specifically for manned-unmanned teaming, letting a single crewed Typhoon or F-35 direct multiple Vortex aircraft as autonomous wingmen. The platform shares sensor data, adapts to changing missions, and keeps operating in contested, jammed airspace.

This positions Vortex within the Ministry of Defence’s Autonomous Collaborative Platforms programme, which funds affordable AI-supported aircraft that extend the RAF’s crewed fleet.

MGI Engineering CEO Mike Gascoyne commented: “Vortex is the logical next step in the journey we’ve been on since SkyShark and TigerShark.” He added that the aircraft’s price point “changes the economics of air power” by allowing forces to field autonomous jets at scale without risking pilots.

Part of a growing platform family

Measuring 11 metres long with a 7.6-metre wingspan, Vortex operates between 20 metres and 12,000 metres altitude, withstanding forces from -2g to +7g. It joins MGI’s existing SkyShark, TigerShark, and LeopardShark platforms, giving customers scalable autonomous air capability across short, medium, and long-range missions.

Learn more on MGI Engineering’s website

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