Defence Research Agency

Former executive agency in the UK

Defence Research AgencyAgency overview

Formed| 1 April 1991
Preceding agencies|

* Admiralty Research Establishment
* Royal Aircraft Establishment
* Aeroplane and Armament Experimental Establishment
* Royal Armament Research and Development Establishment
* Royal Signals and Radar Establishment

Dissolved| April 1995
Superseding agency|

* Defence Evaluation and Research Agency

Headquarters| Farnborough, Hampshire
Parent agency| Ministry of Defence (United Kingdom)

The Defence Research Agency (DRA) was an executive agency of the UK Ministry of Defence (MOD) from April 1991 until April 1995. At the time, the DRA was Britain's largest science and technology organisation. In April 1995, the DRA was combined with five other MOD establishments to form the Defence Evaluation and Research Agency.

## History

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The DRA was formed on 1 April 1991[1] as an amalgamation of the following Defence Research Establishments:

* Admiralty Research Establishment (ARE) – major sites Portsdown, Hampshire and Southwell, Dorset ("Maritime Division")[citation needed]
* Royal Aircraft Establishment (RAE) – major site Farnborough, Hampshire ("Aerospace Division")[2]
* Aeroplane and Armament Experimental Establishment (A&AEE) – major site Boscombe Down[citation needed]
* Royal Armament Research and Development Establishment (RARDE) – major site Fort Halstead, Kent ("Military Division")[citation needed]
* Royal Signals and Radar Establishment (RSRE) – major site Malvern, Worcestershire ("Electronics Division")[citation needed]

DRA's headquarters was created at the RAE site at Farnborough, but the other major sites maintained a great deal of independence.[citation needed]

DRA's first Chief Executive was Nigel Hughes, followed by John Chisholm who took over in August 1991.[citation needed]

In April 1995, the DRA was combined with five other MOD establishments to form the Defence Evaluation and Research Agency (DERA), DRA's John Chisholm becoming Chief Executive of the enlarged DERA (split in July 2001 into DSTL and QinetiQ).[citation needed]

## References

[edit]

1. ^ "Defence Evaluation and Research Agency (DERA) and its immediate predecessors: Reports and Files 1991–2001". 2001. Archived from the original on 22 June 2011. Retrieved 10 September 2011.
2. ^ Lake 1999, p. 57.

## Bibliography

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* Eds. Robert Bud and Philip Gummett (1999), Cold War Hot Science: Applied Research in Britain's Defence Laboratories 1945-1990, Harwood ISBN 90-5702-481-0
* Lake, A (1999). Flying units of the RAF. Shrewsbury: Airlife. ISBN 1-84037-086-6.

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QinetiQ

Divisions and
subsidiaries|

| Current|

* Automatika
* Boldon James
* Cyveillance
* Foster-Miller

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Former|

* Omni-ID

Shareholdings and
partnerships|

* Defence Technology Centre
* Metrix UK
* PSivida

Products|

* Cerberus
* Foster-Miller TALON
* PyTEC
* QinetiQ 1
* QinetiQ Banshee
* Q-Net
* QinetiQ Mercator
* QinetiQ Zephyr
* TopSat

Places and vessels|

* MoD Boscombe Down
* RAE Bedford
* RV Triton

Predecessors|

* Defence Evaluation and Research Agency
* Defence Research Agency
* ARE
* A&AEE
* MVEE
* RAE
* RARDE
* RSRE

People|

* John Chisholm
* Graham Love

Category

Authority control databases

International|

* ISNI
* VIAF

National|

* United States

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