Royal Air Force Typhoon Rapidly Gains Anti-drone Capability with APKWS Missile

Farnborough Airshow 2026

Typhoon Rapidly Gains Anti-drone Capability

Laser-guided APKWS light rocket rapidly adapted for air-to-air use

Typhoon at FIA 2026 — The rapid integration of APKWS is just one example of the ongoing improvements that are being made to the Typhoon to keep it at the forefront of European defense for decades to come. © David McIntosh/AIN

By David Donald • Contributor - UK

July 22, 2026

Royal Air Force Typhoons operating in the Middle East are now wielding a new weapon that is primarily aimed at intercepting drones. The BAE Systems Advanced Precision Kill Weapon System (APKWS)—a laser-guided adaptation of the widely used Hydra 70mm unguided rocket that is typically employed against vehicles and other surface targets—has been adapted to an air-to-air role under an Urgent Operational Requirement.

BAE Systems and the Royal Air Force’s No. 41 Test & Evaluation Squadron began work on the project last September, but the urgency of the need for a counter-uncrewed air system (C-UAS) capability dramatically accelerated at the start of the war with Iran at the end of February. By the third day of the conflict in early March, a test firing had been undertaken, an air-to-surface shot that successfully hit a barge-mounted target. The aim of this trial was primarily to prove that an APKWS could be fired safely from a Typhoon. By May, the weapon was being employed in operation with No. IX Squadron in the Middle East.

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