DASA drives adoption of PYRAMID
Source: gov.uk (2025-09-30)

Phase 2 of the DASA Themed Competition, PYRAMID for avionics and mission systems, aims to accelerate adoption

- DASA has launched a new Themed Competition: PYRAMID for avionics and mission systems Phase 2
- This competition is run on behalf of the Royal Air Force’s Rapid Capabilities Office (RCO)
- The total possible funding available for this competition is up to £3m (excluding VAT)
- Competition closes at midday 25 November 2025 (GMT)
The Defence and Security Accelerator (DASA) (https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/defence-and-security-accelerator) is pleased to launch a new Themed Competition called PYRAMID for avionics and mission systems Phase 2, run on behalf of Royal Air Force’s Rapid Capabilities Office (RCO). Phase 2 follows on from the Phase 1 competition (https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/pyramid-for-avionics-and-mission-systems) and is aimed at furthering the adoption of the PYRAMID Reference Architecture (PRA) in avionics and mission systems. The Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (Dstl) (https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/defence-science-and-technology-laboratory) will assist the RCO with the technical review of the proposals.

PYRAMID is a UK Ministry of Defence (MOD) (https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/ministry-of-defence) initiative to develop time and cost efficient avionics and mission systems to deliver operational advantage. PYRAMID is suitable for both future air systems and legacy systems.

Phase 1 of the PYRAMID Competition was designed specifically to accelerate the adoption of the PRA in the development of systems and to understand if there are any improvements that could be made.

Phase 2 of the Competition intends to continue these themes; with particular interest in encouraging projects which develop collaboration between suppliers, and projects which enhance the benefits of PYRAMID adoption.

Learn more about PYRAMID Phase 2 in the full competition document (https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/pyramid-for-avionics-and-mission-systems-phase-2).

Key dates and funding

The total possible funding available for this competition is £3 million (excluding VAT). We expect to fund between 5 and 10 proposals.

The deadline to submit a proposal is midday 25 November 2025 (GMT).

Ready to apply for funding? Read the full competition document (https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/pyramid-for-avionics-and-mission-systems-phase-2) and submit a proposal.

Supporting activities

Launch Webinar

On 14 October 2025, join us for a competition launch webinar; providing further detail on the challenge area and a chance to ask questions in an open forum. If you would like to participate, please register on the Eventbrite (https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/1656332809019?aff=oddtdtcreator) page.

1-2-1 Sessions

On 23 October you have the opportunity to attend a 15 minute one-to-one teleconference session, giving you the opportunity to ask specific technical questions to the competition team in a closed forum. Registration for these sessions will be available the day after the launch webinar on 14 October 2025, on the Eventbrite page. Booking will be on a first come first served basis.

For more supporting activities, read the full competition document (https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/pyramid-for-avionics-and-mission-systems-phase-2) here.

Submit a proposal

If you would like to benefit from the PYRAMID capability, read the full competition document (https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/pyramid-for-avionics-and-mission-systems-phase-2) to learn more and submit a proposal.