A British soldier taking part in Exercise ‘Steadfast Defender' 2024 in Poland carrying a tactical radio using the Bowman C41 communications system. (Crown Copyright)
The UK Ministry of Defence (MoD) told Janes on 20 December there are no plans to cancel the Morpheus project design to deliver a modernised army communication and information system (CIS).
In a 4 December parliamentary response, Minister for Defence Procurement Maria Eagle said, “Morpheus is a project within the Land Environment Tactical Communication and Information Systems (LETacCIS) programme and is currently delayed. Work to reset the project remains ongoing, and an Independent Project Review, led by the Cabinet Office's Infrastructure and Projects Authority (IPA), will take place in early 2025 and inform next steps.”
Eagle added on 11 December that “as of 5 December 2024 total expenditure for the Morpheus project is GBP828 million (USD1 billion)”.
In response to a Janes request for clarification on the meaning of “reset the project”, the MoD told Janes on 20 December that “the ongoing work with the IPA is focused on how best to deliver the benefits of the projects in the most timely and efficient manner for defence”.
For the IPA, “it's more about providing recommendations on the best way to deliver [the Morpheus project]”, an MoD press officer told Janes on 18 December, adding that all requirements and objectives for the project remain valid.
Programme delays
In April 2017 General Dynamics UK (GDUK) won an MoD contract, known as Evolve to Open Transition Partner (EvO TP), which sought to transition the army's existing tactical communications system, Bowman, with an open-modular modernisation.
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