Thales delivers AI milestone for RAF mission support system

Thales, RAF Digital and the National Armaments Director Group have delivered a new artificial intelligence capability into the RAF’s Multi-Domain Mission Support System.

The milestone brings mission-focused AI and machine learning into MD MSS, a system used to support UK defence operations across multiple aircraft and maritime platforms. Thales said it also marks the first operational deployment of AI from its UK cortAIx Factory.

MD MSS has been in continuous operational service since 1986, when it began as a mission data system for the Nimrod Maritime Patrol Aircraft. It has since evolved into the RAF’s primary system for multi-domain mission support.

The current contract, originally awarded by DE&S, now the National Armaments Director Group, in 2021 and extended in 2026, supports a system used across platforms including the F-35B Lightning II, Typhoon, Poseidon, Voyager and Chinook. MD MSS is also installed aboard HMS Queen Elizabeth and HMS Prince of Wales to support Carrier Strike Group air operations.

AI enters RAF mission support system

MD MSS processes, transmits and manipulates complex mission data from multiple sources and locations, helping deliver critical information to aircrew and ground-based planners.

The latest development moves the system beyond existing rule-based analytical tools, such as pattern-of-life visualisation and behavioural alerting. Thales said the new capability uses its cortAIx Factory’s Frugal Learning methodology, developed with Faculty AI, to deploy what it described as the first true machine learning capability within MD MSS.

Initially applied to maritime track analysis, the system trains on limited operational data to build a model of normal and abnormal behaviour. It can monitor shipping patterns, filter routine activity and identify anomalies that may otherwise be missed within large volumes of data.

Defence AI moves from concept to service

Alex Buckley, team leader at NAD Materiel, said the integration of AI within MD MSS represented “another step ahead” for RAF operational capability.

He said: “Interrogating and interpreting complex mission data at pace will directly support more timely and informed decision-making in demanding environments.

“From a NAD Materiel perspective, this milestone demonstrates how cutting-edge digital technologies can be rapidly and effectively embedded into proven, in-service systems, reinforcing the value of sustained collaboration between MOD, RAF Digital and industry partners.”

Terry Makewell, RAF chief digital and technology officer, said the development was “a significant step forward for the RAF’s use of AI in operational systems”.

He added that the capability would help operators analyse complex mission data faster and focus on what matters most.

Thales said maritime track analysis is the first application of Frugal Learning within MD MSS, but the embedded AI framework could support future development across other track types and domains, including flight tracks and additional data sources.