Cette certification ouvre, au drone Watchkeeper de Thales, la possibilité de vols militaires dans un espace aérien approprié partout dans le monde.

7 octobre Aerobuzz.fr

Thales UK annonce qu’un certificat de type (STDA ou Statement of Type Design Assurance en anglais) lui a été délivré par l’autorité de l’aviation militaire du Royaume-Uni (MAA1) pour son système de drone Watchkeeper.

Ce certificat de type confirme que le drone Watchkeeper est conforme aux normes de conception approuvées par la MAA et que le système dans son intégralité (cellule, stations sol et logiciels systèmes) a atteint un niveau de sécurité et d’intégrité acceptable. Il représente un élément clé du processus de certification, ouvrant la voie pour le MoD britannique vers la délivrance d’une autorisation de mise en service.

Watchkeeper est le premier drone à recevoir une certification de ce genre de la part de la MAA. Il s’agit-là d’une étape importante vers l’acceptation des drones au sein de l’espace aérien. Cela sous-tend la possibilité de vols militaires dans un espace aérien approprié partout dans le monde.

29 sept. 2013  defenseupdate

26.09.2013 Par Olivier Berger, grand reporter à La Voix du Nord. Défense globale

Un premier équipage de l'escadron de drones 1/33 Belfort de la base aérienne 709 de Cognac, sur les trois actuellement en formation sur la base de l'US Air Force d'Holloman au Nouveau-Mexique, a fait voler durant deux heures un drone MQ-9 Reaper, modèle acquis par la France (photo armée de l'Air).

Après cinq semaines de formation et cinq heures de vol sur simulateur, ce premier vol a été opéré par un équipage constitué de deux pilotes opérateurs, ayant déjà une expérience sur les systèmes de drones français (Harfang), précise le communiqué de l'Armée de l'Air.

Rappelons que l'escadron de drones 1/33 Belfort est installé à la BA 709 de Cognac depuis 2009 et regroupe 80 personnels, des opérateurs Harfang jusqu'aux techniciens de maintenance.

Si le Livre blanc préconise l'acquisition de douze drones de surveillance, la France s'apprête donc à en acheter deux avant la fin de l'année. Les Harfang ont joué leur rôle lors de l'opération Serval mais leur technologie est dépassée. Les Etats-Unis ont donné leur accord pour extraire de la ligne de production du fabricant General Atomics deux exemplaires de MQ-9 Reaper dans une version de surveillance non armée (environ 40 millions d'euros pièce à part accord particulier).

Car ce drone, de 11 m de long et de 20 m d'envergure, qui vole 27 heures jusqu'à 15 000 m d'altitude, peut transporter et tirer des missiles sol-air (voire deux missiles air-air ou deux bombes). L'US Air Force a largement utilisé sa puissance de feu en Afghanistan voire au Pakistan.

Le Reaper, qui signifie moissonneur (ou faucheur), ne sera donc pas utilisé au maximum par l'armée française. Et de toute façon pas sur le sol national ou même européen. Ce produit intégralement américain n'est a priori pas habilité à survoler nos contrées.

L'armée américaine compte 104 Reaper et l'US Air Force compte en acheter douze supplémentaires d'ici 2014. Jusqu'ici, seuls les armées britanniques et turques possèdent des MQ-9 Reaper.

September 26, 2013 By  James R. Holmes - The Naval Diplomat

September 26, 2013 By  Zachary Keck - thediplomat.com

The first decade of drone and unmanned warfare has been the exclusive domain of nation states like the U.S. and Israel using armed drones to target leaders of non-state actors like al-Qaeda, the Taliban and Hamas.

This type of drone warfare will almost certainly continue into the future, albeit at a reduced pace in the case of the U.S. targeting al-Qaeda and Taliban leaders. Other nation states may decide to make similar use of drones, if reports that China considered using drones to target an international drug trader are any indication.

Meanwhile, a second generation of drone warfare is taking shape: one in which countries employ unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) against other nation states.

As the world's military superpower, it should come as no surprise that the U.S. is taking the lead in this endeavor. In May of this year, the U.S. garnered some headlines when it launched the X-47B drone from the nuclear aircraft carrier USS George H.W. Bush off the coast of Virginia. Many more heads were turned in July, when the X-47B drone became the first unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) to make a landing on the same aircraft carrier.

Last week a X-47B drone marked the 100^th flight in the U.S. Navy’s Unmanned Combat Air System Demonstration (UCAS-D) program, which is geared toward maturing the capability to operate combat UAVs from aircraft carriers.

A press release announcing the 100^th flight stated: “The Navy UCAS program successfully completed all objectives for the carrier demonstration phase with the X-47B.” It went on to note: “The program is currently planning for continued carrier integration demonstrations and has also begun surrogate Learjet testing of the autonomous aerial refueling (AAR) capability.” Earlier this month, the Navy announced key successes in this latter, refueling objective.

This followed the Navy’s announcement in August that the two prototype X-47Bs would not be retired to museums as planned, but instead would continue to be utilized for the purpose of, among other things, “developing unmanned aircraft carrier fleet concept of operations.”

Also in August, the U.S. Naval Air System Command (NAVAIR), which is overseeing the efforts to develop a carrier-based UAV fleet, announced that it had awarded US$15 million Preliminary Design Review (PDR) contracts to four defense companies for the Unmanned Carrier Launched Airborne Surveillance and Strike (UCLASS) program, which is designed to provide the U.S. Navy with its first deployed carrier-based unmanned air system.

As NAVAIR explained in a press release announcing the contracts, the carrier-based drone “will provide persistent, unmanned, semi-autonomous, carrier-based Intelligence, Surveillance, Reconnaissance and Targeting (ISR &T) with precision strike capability to support 24/7 carrier operational coverage.”

According to Defense News, the carrier-based UAVs will initially have a strike capability of around 2,000 km. This hints at a key purpose of the drones; namely, to allow the U.S. to continue to strike China with sea-based aircraft while keeping America’s aircraft carriers outside the range of the PLA’s DF-21 anti-ship ballistic missile (ASBM). In other words, the sea-based drones will be a key component of America’s efforts to counter adversaries’ anti access/area denial (A2/AD) strategies.   

The U.S. is also putting together the larger infrastructure to execute this strategy. For example, in July Rear Adm. Thomas J. Moore, the Navy’s Program Executive Officer for Aircraft Carriers, confirmed that the Ford-class aircraft carriers, the next-generation U.S. carriers, are being built with the capabilities to launch large fleets of UAVs off them.

As Moore explained of the Ford Class: “The flight deck has been designed to be bigger and have a higher sortie generation rate. The ship itself is built with three-times the electrical generating capacity than the Nimitz {Ford predecessor} class has – so it is not hard to envision that we are going to be flying unmanned aircraft off that ship.”

One crucial difference between using drones against terrorists in areas where the air force enjoys air superiority, and in using them against peer-competitors in contested air space, is that the vulnerability of the drones to air defense systems becomes a key concern in the latter environment. Thus, whereas U.S. drones can loiter over Pakistani airspace for days trying to pinpoint the location of al-Qaeda operatives, they will enjoy no such luxury in trying to eliminate China’s land-based missile systems.

As such, the carrier-based combat drones that come out of the UCLASS will be unlikely to conduct their own surveillance in many of the missions in which they were operate. For that, the U.S. is developing different UAVs. As Foreign Policy reported last month, the U.S. Navy envisions “swarms of tiny drones infiltrating heavily defended skies at will.”

Summarizing a U.S. Air Force official, the report noted that “these bug-like surveillance bots will be particularly useful in the Pacific…. Because that represents the toughest challenge for American spyplanes: snooping on say, a China equipped with increasingly advanced air defenses.” Presumably, these nano-drones will collect intelligence on targets for the UCLASS drones.

The U.S. is developing another unmanned system to counter China’s A2/AD strategy. Earlier this month, Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) solicited bids from defense companies for its Hydra program, which will “develop and demonstrate an unmanned undersea system, providing a novel delivery mechanism for insertion of unmanned air and underwater vehicles into operational environments.” News reports suggest that submarines will also be launched from the Hydra system. This would give the U.S. the ability to launch carrier-based aircraft from devices that would be impervious to China’s ASBMs.

September 24, 2013 defense-aerospace.com

(Source: US Air Force; issued Sept. 23, 2013)

100K & Going: Global Hawk Makes Mark As Safest Platform

GRAND FORKS AFB, N.D. --- Although the days of the bombers and tankers are long gone, Airmen at Grand Forks Air Force Base, N.D., are still finding ways to make Air Force history thanks to the Global Hawk mission.

The Northrop Grumman Corporation recently announced that its high-altitude, long-endurance unmanned aircraft systems achieved 100,000 flight hours Sept. 5.

News of the milestone was well-received by the leadership and members of the 69th Reconnaissance Group, the unit at Grand Forks AFB directly in charge of conducting Global Hawk missions.

"This milestone is something in which those of us involved in the Global Hawk mission take great pride," said Col. Lawrence Spinetta, 69th RG commander.

According to the Air Force Safety Center, Kirtland AFB, N.M., approximately 85 percent of the 100,000 flight hours for this aircraft were logged by U.S. Air Force Global Hawks. Credit for the remaining flight hours was split among the NASA, German and U.S. Navy versions of the aircraft.

The Global Hawk also has the safest record of any fighter, bomber or reconnaissance aircraft in the Air Force's active inventory.

"The safety record of the U.S. Air Force Global Hawk fleet is remarkable, especially given the fact that the system was rushed to combat and flew 75 percent of its first 100,000 hours supporting our warfighters in Afghanistan and elsewhere," Spinetta said. "These figures prove the reliability of unmanned aircraft technology. More importantly, it's testament to the professionalism of our Airmen and the pride they take in accomplishing our mission."

The Global Hawk is aptly named. Every day, RQ-4s circle the globe, providing critical strategic intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance to six combatant commands.

"The jet's long endurance is a significant combat force multiplier," Spinetta said.

The RQ-4, which can fly for upwards of 30 hours nonstop, has the ability to cover almost half the circumference of the world without refueling. That capability makes it a key contributor to the global vigilance, global reach, and global power of the U.S. Air Force.

Spinetta reflected on the recent aviation milestone and contemplated what it means for the history of the Air Force.

He told members of the 69th RG that their hard work is "the realization of an Air Force prophecy" by Gen. Henry H. "Hap" Arnold. As the commanding general for the U.S. Army Air Force in 1945, Arnold said, "We have just won a war with a lot of heroes flying around in planes. The next war may be fought by airplanes with no men in them at all...Take everything you've learned about aviation in war, throw it out the window, and let's go to work on tomorrow's aviation."

Members of the 69th RG will receive patches from Northrop Grumman commemorating the milestone.

"Some people might refer to the patch as badge of honor, however, we know the real honor is knowing we are doing an excellent job protecting our warriors and our nation," Spinetta said. "That's exactly what we will continue to do."

23.09.2013 Helen Chachaty -journal-aviation.com

Le secrétaire général de l’OTAN, Anders Fogh Rasmussen, a plaidé pour que les États européens membres de l’alliance nord-atlantique acquièrent « plus de drones pour améliorer la surveillance » des territoires.

Ces mots, prononcés dans le cadre d’une conférence donnée au think tank Carnegie Europe, s’inscrivent dans le cadre d’une recommandation plus général de Rasmussen, qui appelle de ses vœux une amélioration des capacités ISR, par le biais de drones, mais également par la modernisation de la flotte européenne d’AWACS.

Dans la même idée, le secrétaire général de l’OTAN ai plaidé pour un renforcement de la flotte d’avions de transports et de ravitailleurs, afin d’augmenter l’efficacité des moyens de surveillance aéroportée.

Il a également salué le rapport publié par la Commission européenne en juillet dernier, intitulé « vers une défense et une sécurité européenne plus compétitive et plus efficace en Europe », qui met en avant la nécessité de renforcer la BITD, le soutien aux PME, les synergies duales et le marché intérieur.

Anders Fogh Rasmussen a enfin émis une forte attente concernant le Conseil européen du mois de décembre, qui sera consacré aux questions de Défense : « J’attends […] la preuve d’un fort engagement politique ».

WASHINGTON, Sept. 18 (UPI)

The U.S. Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency is seeking development of a reusable hypersonic unmanned vehicle for the launch of satellites.

The vehicle -- with operation and reliability similar to traditional aircraft – would lower the cost of launching military satellites, which often costs hundreds of millions of dollars.

"We want to build off of proven technologies to create a reliable, cost-effective space delivery system with one-day turnaround," said Jess Sponable, DARPA program manager heading the development project, which is called XS-1. "How it's configured, how it gets up and how it gets back are pretty much all on the table -- we're looking for the most creative yet practical solutions possible."

The XS-1, or Experimental Spaceplane program, aims for an unmanned vehicle that would allow for daily operations and flights to launch small satellites, without need for specialized infrastructure and with the use of a small number of ground crew, DARPA said.

A reusable first stage would fly to hypersonic speeds at a sub-orbital altitude. One or more expendable upper stages would then separate and deploy a satellite into low Earth orbit.

DARPA has issued a special notice on the program, asking for ideas and proposals for the XS-1 program.

"XS-1 aims to help break the cycle of launches happening farther and farther apart and costing more and more," Sponable said. "It would also help further our progress toward practical hypersonic aircraft technologies and increase opportunities to test new satellite technologies as well."

Sept. 16, 2013 defense-unmanned.com

(Source: US Department of Defense; issued Sept. 16, 2013)

Insitu Inc., Bingen, Wash., is being awarded a $300,000,000 firm-fixed-price, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract for hardware and operational and maintenance services in support of the ScanEagle Unmanned Aerial Systems operated by the U.S. Special Operations Command.

The hardware and services to be provided include replacement air vehicles, spare and consumable parts, and in-theatre field service representatives to supplement naval special warfare operators.

Work will be performed in Bingen, Wash., and is expected to be completed in September 2016. Fiscal 2013 operations and maintenance, Navy, overseas contingency operations contract funds in the amount of $85,000,000 will be obligated at the time of award, all of which will expire at the end of the current fiscal year.

This contract was not competitively procured pursuant to FAR 6.302-1.

The Naval Air Systems Command, Patuxent River, Md., is the contracting activity (N00019-13-D-0016).

Sept. 17, 2013 by Craig Hoyle – FG

London - Cranfield Aerospace and Raytheon UK are testing a new lightweight unmanned air system, which is now being promoted to potential buyers.

Aimed at the military intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance market, but also potentially suitable for a range of civilian applications, Cassius features a high level of autonomy, says Cranfield business adviser Keith Marshall.

"The operator just has to check if the weather conditions are within launch tolerance and find the wind direction, then after launch all they have to do is 'fly' the sensor," Marshall says.

First flown around two months ago and exhibited for the first time at the 10-13 September DSEi show in London, Cassius has a maximum take-off weight of 8.75kg (19.3lb), including a Raytheon-sourced electro-optical/infrared sensor payload. Flight endurance is in excess of 3h, and service ceiling above 5,000ft (1,520m).

"We have had a lot of interest, including with international customers," Marshall says. Civilian applications could include performing border or environmental monitoring tasks, he adds.

Flight-testing with the system is continuing, with the partners seeking to complete an initial 50h of activity.

"In the not too distant future there will be more UAS," says Phil Nettleship, chief of engineering at Raytheon UK's Airborne Solutions unit. "As a group, we have an interest in this sector."

16 septembre 2013 par Edouard Maire – Info-Aviation

L’interception d’un drone chinois par un avion de chasse japonais au-dessus de la mer de Chine orientale indique que la plate-forme BUAA BZK-005 de moyenne altitude et longue endurance (MALE) est entrée en service dans l’armée chinoise.

Le 9 septembre 2013, un chasseur de la Japan Air Self- Defense (JMSDF) a intercepté un drone qui se dirigeait vers Okinawa depuis l’espace aérien chinois. Le drone photographié disposait d’un rmoteur, d’un double empennage avec des ailerons inclinés vers l’extérieur, et une tourelle optique qui correspond à la description du BZK-005.

L’armée de l’air japonaise a suivi le drone qui se dirigeait vers le détroit de Miyako entre Okinawa et les îles Miyakojima. À environ 170 km du détroit , il a effectué une patrouille circulaire avant de retourner vers la Chine.

Le BZK -005 a déjà été vu dans une vidéo promotionnelle du groupe AVIC au salon aéronautique de Zhuhai en 2006. Et en octobre 2009, deux plates-formes ont été photographiés sur un aérodrome près de Pékin. Il semble que le drone soit très similaire au Heron fabriqué par Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI), en s’ajoutant une autonomie d’environ 40 heures à une altitude maximale d’environ 26.000 pieds.

Le drone chinois a effectué sa patrouille un jour après que la JASDF découvre deux bombardiers Xian H-6 qui survolaient le détroit de Miyako qui coïncidait aussi avec le premier anniversaire de la nationalisation partielle des îles Senkaku (Diaoyutai), qui sont également revendiquées par la Chine et Taiwan.

Le ministère de la Défense japonais a également publié des images prises par un avion de patrouille maritime P-3C Orion montrant deux frégates type 054A, Yiyang (fanion 548) et Changzhou (549), à environ 100 km au nord-est des îles Miyakojima.

Reste que cette observation d’un drone – qui est certainement d’origine chinoise – permet au Japon de justifier ses récentes initiatives pour accroître sa force militaire à Okinawa avec l’arrivée de F-15J/DJ Mitsubishi Eagles et d’avions de surveillance E-2 Hawkeye Northrop Grumman.

16.09.2013  affaires-strategiques.info