What Is Rolls-Royce Not Telling Us About the Rolls-Royce Bae Drone Dispute Over Brontanax?

A scale model of a futuristic blended-wing aircraft is showcased inside an immersive projection environment, surrounded by synchronized sky visuals that bring the concept to life in a full-scale simulated flight setting. (Credit: Adam Morrison/BAE Systems)

Rolls-Royce was quietly left off BAE Systems' new Brontanax drone programme over a pricing row around its Orpheus engine, and chief executive Tufan Erginbilgic is refusing to say why, insisting only that questions should be put to BAE and that the two companies will 'work on this' in future.

Rolls-Royce was not in the room when BAE Systems unveiled Brontanax at Farnborough last week. More than 70 British firms were. Rolls-Royce, the company that built the engines for the Spitfire and the Lancaster, was not among them.