UK Tests Defence Supply Chains Under War Conditions in Major Exercise

A major wargame with leading defence companies this week will test how supply chains would perform under the pressure of sustained, large-scale conflict.

The exercise is bringing together five major defence companies - Boeing, KNDS, MBDA, Rheinmetall and Tekever - alongside senior Ministry of Defence (MOD) leaders.

Participants will work through a scenario requiring a surge in demand for key equipment to be maintained over an extended period, examining where constraints may emerge and what actions government and industry can take to minimise risk.

MOD-industry exercise builds on a previous wargame held in December 2024, which stress tested ammunition and equipment supplies within a war time scenario. Findings from the exercise will inform ongoing policy and legislative development, including work to improve defence readiness set out in both the Strategic Defence Review and the Defence Industrial Strategy.

The Defence Industrial Strategy set out how significant investment will build a more resilient and responsive defence supply chain. The Strategy prioritises strengthening domestic supply chains in critical areas, diversifying the supplier base and ensuring smaller, innovative companies can play a greater role in equipping our Armed Forces.

The Strategic Defence Review set out the UK’s commitment to building sovereign industrial capability at pace, and this wargame is part of that effort — ensuring that plans to surge supply in a crisis can be tested, refined and delivered in practice.

The work is backed by the largest sustained increase in spending since the end of the Cold War - rising to 2.6% of GDP from 2027.

Read the full press release below.