Laying the groundwork for tomorrow’s defence capabilities. The Preparatory Action on Defence Research (PADR) was decided by the European Commission with one main objective in mind: to demonstrate the added-value of EUfunded research in the defence sector. Set to start in mid-2017 and running over a three-year period (2017-2019), the PA will thus be a genuine test-bed for proving the relevance of European defence research and laying the foundations for a fully-fledged EU defence R&D programme in the Multi-annual Financial Framework 2021-2027.