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17 juin 2013 1 17 /06 /juin /2013 19:50
Drones : EADS, Dassault et Finmeccanica unissent leurs forces

Avec un tel programme, "la souveraineté et l'indépendance européenne en matière de gestion de l'information et du renseignement seraient garanties, tout en offrant un système robuste, capable de résister aux cyber-attaques", soulignent les industriels.

 

16-06-2013 Par Vincent Lamigeon - Challenges

 

Les trois constructeurs aéronautiques européens demandent à leurs gouvernements de lancer un programme de drone de surveillance pour rattraper d'ici 2020 leurs concurrents israéliens et américains. Grand absent : le britannique BAE.

 

Le communiqué a sidéré les observateurs, en pleine effervescence dominicale pré-Bourget : Cassidian (EADS), Finmeccanica et Dassault Aviation ont décrété dimanche matin l’union sacrée sur le segment des drones de surveillance. Dans un communiqué commun, les trois industriels demandent aux gouvernements européens le lancement d’un programme de drone MALE (moyenne altitude longue endurance) 100% européen, se déclarant prêts à s’entendre sur le sujet. Un moyen de sortir enfin de la dépendance aux appareils américains et israéliens, l’Europe étant contrainte d’acheter ses drones sur étagère, comme la France va le faire en s’offrant 12 Reaper américains pour 670 millions d’euros.

 

Où est passé BAE ?

 

Sur le papier, l’initiative est forte : Cassidian et Dassault avaient longtemps présenté des projets de drones de troisième génération concurrents (Talarion pour le premier, Telemos pour le second, en partenariat avec BAE Systems). Ils s’étaient aussi affrontés sur le créneau des drones actuels, EADS se rangeant derrière l’américain General Atomics pour franciser le Reaper, et Dassault proposant une version francisée du Heron TP de l’israélien IAI. L’alliance des deux groupes, couplée à la présence de l’italien Finmeccanica, est un signe positif sur la volonté des industriels de mettre en veilleuse leurs différends pour développer une vraie filière drone en Europe.

 

Drones : EADS, Dassault et Finmeccanica unissent leurs forces

Sur le terrain, la bonne volonté risque cependant de se confronter à quelques obstacles. D’abord, l’union sacrée n’est pas totale : le britannique BAE, pourtant partenaire de Dassault sur le projet avorté Telemos, est aux abonnés absents, pour des raisons qu’il conviendra d’élucider. Sans BAE dans le jeu, une commande britannique du nouvel appareil risque de rester longtemps hypothétique.

 

Un maître d'oeuvre à définir

 

Autre question: sur quelle base se baserait un futur drone MALE européen ? Le Telemos mort-né de Dassault? Celui-ci était largement inspiré du Mantis de BAE, qui, on l’a vu, n’est pas dans la partie. Le Talarion d’EADS, lui aussi dans le grand carton des projets jamais lancés ? Cassidian, la filiale défense du groupe européen, ne s’est pas privée de communiquer à la presse une vue d’artiste de sa vision du futur drone européen… qui ressemble étrangement au Talarion.

 

Ce projet présente l’avantage d’avoir fait l’objet d’une étude de réduction des risques financée par la France, l’Allemagne, et l’Espagne. EADS avait finalement dû abandonner le programme, après l’avoir maintenu sous perfusion un bout de temps, en l’absence de financement des trois pays pour la suite du projet. Dassault accepterait-il de se ranger derrière cette solution ? Même question pour Finmeccanica, dont la filiale électronique Selex présente au Bourget un porjet de drone MALE baptisé Hammerhead, basé sur le turbopropulseur italien Piaggio Avanti. Les industriels risquent de débattre durement sur le nom du futur maître d'oeuvre du drone européen.

 

L'Europe a-t-elle les moyens de lancer ce programme ?

 

Le dernier point d’interrogation est celui de la bonne volonté des Etats européens. Si le ministre de la défense français Jean-Yves Le Drian, a confirmé la semaine dernière être favorable au projet de drone MALE européen, le soutien des autres pays est loin d’être évident. L’Allemagne est en plein psychodrame après avoir décidé d’arrêter le programme de drone HALE (haute altitude longue endurance) Euro Hawk, et semble échaudée sur le sujet des drones. Le Royaume-Uni et l’Italie ont déjà acheté des drones américains Reaper, et ils seront peut-être bientôt suivis par la France et l’Allemagne : restera-t-il des moyens pour financer un nouveau programme européen ?

 

L’Europe n’a pourtant guère le choix : si elle veut continuer à exister sur le segment, elle devra y investir massivement, à la fois sur les drones de surveillance, et sur les engins armés de type UCAV, dont le projet nEUROn est une préfiguration. La place du Vieux Continent sur l’échiquier mondial de la défense est à ce prix.

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15 juin 2013 6 15 /06 /juin /2013 16:20
RQ-21A Small UAS Completes 1st East Coast flight

 

 

Jun 14, 2013 ASDNews Source : Naval Air Systems Command

 

The RQ-21A Small Tactical Unmanned Aircraft System (STUAS) completed its first East Coast flight from Webster Field Annex on June 12, marking the start of the next phase of test for the program.

 

A team from the Navy and Marine Corps STUAS program office (PMA-263) here and industry partner Insitu, Inc., are conducting flight operations at Webster, NAS Pax River’s outlying field, this June in preparation for Integrated Operational Test and Evaluation (IOT&E) in the fall.

 

During the June 12 flight, Insitu operators launched the unmanned aircraft using a pneumatic launcher, eliminating the need for a runway. The RQ-21A was recovered after a 1.8 hour flight, using a company-built system known as the STUAS Recovery System (SRS). The system enables a safe recovery and expeditionary capability for tactical UAS on land or at sea.

 

“This test period brings us closer to providing our warfighter with a unique capability — an indigenous UAS capable of operations from both land and sea,” said U.S. Marine Corps Col. Jim Rector, PMA-263 program manager. “The expeditionary nature of the RQ-21A makes it possible to deploy a multi-intelligence capable UAS with minimal footprint.”

 

The current phase of testing is intended to validate updates that have been made to the system in the past several months, which include software, fuselage and camera enhancements. The conditions at Webster Field also allow the team to test aircraft performance points at lower density altitudes, said Greg Oliver, the program’s lead test engineer.

 

In 2012, the small unmanned aircraft completed land-based testing in China Lake, Calif., and began ship-based developmental tests aboard USS Mesa Verde (LPD 19) in February. After this test phase is complete, the team will transport the system, which includes a ground control station and three air vehicles, back to Norfolk, Va., to embark LPD 19  for shipboard flight testing in July.

 

IOT&E will begin in October at Marine Air Ground Task Force Training Command (MCAGCC) Twentynine Palms, Calif. Ship-based IOT&E is scheduled for December in preparation for the system’s initial deployment in 2014.

 

The RQ-21A platform is designed to fill a need for the Marine Expeditionary Forces, Navy L-Class ships, and Naval Special Warfare (NSW) Units. When deployed, it will provide a 24/7 maritime and land-based tactical reconnaissance, surveillance, and target acquisition data collection and dissemination capabilities to the warfighter.

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15 juin 2013 6 15 /06 /juin /2013 16:20
U.S. Navy Ships Get a New UAV

June 15, 2013: Strategy Page

 

Production has begun for the American RQ-21A Integrator UAV. The U.S. Navy and Marines as well as the Dutch Navy have ordered the 55 kg (121 pound) UAV, which has a 4.9 meter (16 foot) wingspan and can fly as high as 4,500 meters (15,000 feet) at a cruise speed of 100 kilometers an hour. RQ-21A can stay in the air up to 24 hours and carry a payload of 23 kg (50 pounds). It uses the same takeoff and landing equipment as the Scan Eagle.  RQ-21A also uses many of the Scan Eagle sensors in addition to new ones that were too heavy for Scan Eagle. The additional weight of the RQ-21A makes it more stable in bad weather or windy conditions.

 

The marines have ordered 32 systems (with five UAVs each), while the navy is getting four and the Dutch five systems (which include ground controllers and maintenance gear). The first RQ-21As are expected to enter service next year.

 

Scan Eagle weighs 19 kg (40 pounds), has a 3.2 meter (ten foot) wingspan, and uses day and night video cameras and on ships uses a catapult for launch and is landed via a wing hook that catches a rope hanging from a 16 meter (fifty foot) pole. This was recently replaced with the more compact CLRE (Compact Launch and Recovery System). On land Scan Eagle can land on any flat, solid surface.

 

The Scan Eagle can stay in the air for up to 15 hours per flight and fly as high as 5 kilometers (16,000 feet). Scan Eagle cruising speed is 110 kilometers an hour and can operate at least a hundred kilometers from the ground controller. Scan Eagle carries an optical system that is stabilized to keep the cameras focused on an object while the UAV moves. Scan Eagle has been flying for over a decade now and has been in military service since 2005.

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13 juin 2013 4 13 /06 /juin /2013 17:55
MQ-9 Reaper flies above Creech AFB - photo USAF

MQ-9 Reaper flies above Creech AFB - photo USAF

13 Juin 2013 par Frédéric Pons  - V.A.

 

Salon du Bourget. Nos armées ont tardé à se décider en faveur de ces armes et les politiques à les financer. Les impasses d’hier obligent à acheter du matériel américain. Mais avec quelles contraintes ?

 

Le Mali l’a démontré. La panoplie française souffre d’un vide inquiétant en matière de drones dits “Male” (moyenne altitude, longue endurance). Notre armée de l’air n’en possède que quatre, des Harfang (EADS, sur une plate-forme israélienne), faute d’avoir su mobiliser ses ingénieurs et ses militaires voilà quinze ou vingt ans. « L’ensemble de la communauté de défense, le ministère autant que l’industrie, a manqué le virage de ce type d’équipement, regrette Jean-Yves Le Drian, le ministre de la Défense. Et ce qui est vrai en France l’est aussi en Europe. » Il faut reconnaître aussi que ces avions sans pilote n’étaient pas la priorité des décideurs de l’armée de l’air, pour la plupart pilotes de chasse…

 

La France court derrière ses drones

Après l’Afghanistan et la Libye, les Harfang ont prouvé leur utilité au Sahel, à partir du Niger. En quatre mois, ils ont réalisé 90 sorties, 1 600 heures de mission au-dessus du Mali, un territoire grand comme deux fois et demie la France. Mais ces machines, surexploitées, sont en fin de vie, avec des capteurs vieillissants. « Nous avons besoin d’une solution de court terme et d’une vision de long terme », expliquait l’an dernier le général Paloméros, alors chef d’état-major de l’armée de l’air.

 

Les besoins sont tels et la demande si pressante que la France se voit obligée d’acheter du matériel américain, après des années d’hésitations : Jean-Yves Le Drian et son homologue américain Chuck Hagel se sont mis d’accord, le 17 mai à Washington, sur l’achat de deux drones Reaper. Fabriqué par General Atomics, cet engin de 4,5 tonnes (quatre fois plus lourd qu’un Harfang) est capable de voler vingt-quatre heures. « Il fallait sortir d’une impasse opérationnelle et industrielle pour enfin doter la France de drones, pièces maîtresses du renseignement et de la guerre de demain », dit le ministre de la Défense.

 

Cette bonne nouvelle pour les opérations ne l’est pas vraiment pour les industriels européens. L’achat se fait au seul profit de l’industrie américaine, au détriment des laboratoires et des usines d’Europe. « À force d’avoir raté trop de rendez-vous cruciaux sur ce dossier, on achète sur étagère aux États-Unis, aux conditions du Pentagone », résume un familier du dossier.

 

Le constat de carence en drones est en réalité fait depuis longtemps. Mais la nécessité de s’en doter est longtemps restée une incantation, vide de sens sans les investissements nécessaires. Le livre blanc de la défense 2013 ne déroge pas à la règle : il annonce douze « drones de sur veillance de théâtre » d’ici à 2019. Mais avec quels moyens ?

 

Euro Hawk décollage de la BA De de Manching 11.01.2013 photo EADS - Cassidian

Euro Hawk décollage de la BA De de Manching 11.01.2013 photo EADS - Cassidian

En Europe, aucun programme n’est prêt. Les pays européens ont renoncé à toute production autonome, sauf pour les drones tactiques, avec le programme Watchkeeper de l’armée britannique, en cours d’essai. L’Allemagne vient de faire une croix sur son Euro Hawk, la version européanisée par EADS Cassidian du “vieux” et puissant Global Hawk de l’américain Northrop Grumman, trois fois plus lourd que le Reaper.

 

source lefigaro.fr

source lefigaro.fr

La dernière perspective de drone européen reste l’ambitieux Neuron de Dassault Aviation, en coopération avec Alenia (Italie), Saab (Suède), EADS-Casa (Espagne), HAI (Grèce) et Ruag (Suisse). Son premier vol a eu lieu en décembre dernier à Istres. Dassault travaille aussi avec Israël, l’autre producteur mondial de drones Male, sur un programme dérivé du Heron-TP israélien.

 

Le contrat Reaper n’est pas idéal. La France en achète deux, avec une station au sol. Aucune technologie française ne devrait être embarquée et les Américains ont sans doute posé des conditions à leur emploi, comme ils l’ont fait pour le Royaume-Uni et l’Italie, privés de toute autonomie : l’escadron des drones anglais est stationné… sur la base aérienne de Creech, au Nevada !

 

L’enjeu pour la France sera de rester autonome, avec des capteurs et des systèmes de communication par satellite placés sous le contrôle des seuls opérateurs français. Ce n’est pas gagné car les Américains sont d’une grande vigilance sur leurs technologies sensibles, d’autant que la polémique ternit le blason de ces armes réputées “non éthiques” (lire ci-contre).

 

La CIA a effectué des centaines de frappes entre 2008 et cette année, en Afghanistan, au Pakistan, au Yémen. Près de 4 700 personnes auraient été tuées, dont des centaines de cibles terroristes, dites “à haute valeur ajoutée”. Barack Obama promet plus de contrôle et de transparence sur les drones armés, transmettant leur responsabilité de la CIA au Pentagone.

 

Pour la France, les drones de combat ne sont envisagés qu’à l’horizon 2030. Ils viendront compléter voire remplacer les avions de chasse. « Ce rendez-vous, nous ne le manquerons pas », promet Le Drian, annonçant « les moyens nécessaires ». Pour l’instant, l’état-major français exclut toute intention de posséder des drones armés pour des bombardements ciblés. Pour l’instant…

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13 juin 2013 4 13 /06 /juin /2013 07:55
MQ-9 Reaper photo Staff Sgt. Brian Ferguson US Air Force

MQ-9 Reaper photo Staff Sgt. Brian Ferguson US Air Force

11/06/2013 Vincent Lamigeon, grand reporter à Challenges - Supersonique


Cette fois, l’affaire semble entendue. Après des années d’atermoiements et de fausses pistes des différents gouvernements, qui ont abouti à la marginalisation de l’Europe sur le marché des drones, le ministre de la défense Jean-Yves Le Drian a confirmé ce midi la très probable commande d’une douzaine de drones MALE (moyenne altitude, longue endurance) Reaper, de l’américain General Atomics. Le montant estimé de cette commande de Reaper, en version non armée et qui reste soumise à l’approbation du Congrès américain, est de 670 millions d’euros.

 

C’était un secret de Polichinelle, c’est désormais une certitude : la solution israélienne, basée sur le Heron TP de l’industriel IAI, est clairement écartée. « Nous avons abouti à un accord avec les Etats-Unis sur une première commande de deux machines, avant une deuxième tranche de 10 appareils, indique le ministre. L’opérabilité globale, notamment dans le cadre de l’OTAN, est plus facile avec le drone américain. » Les discussions avec le Pentagone sur le premier lot de deux drones avaient été révélées par Challenges le 11 avril.

 

La France espère la livraison de ces deux premiers drones d’ici à la fin de l’année pour couvrir la zone sahélienne. La seconde tranche de dix drones serait francisée selon des modalités à définir, pour leur permettre de voler dans le ciel européen. L’accord du Congrès sur cette deuxième tranche s’annonce plus difficile, la francisation supposant l’accès au code-source de l’appareil. « Cela devrait pouvoir se débloquer, assure Jean-Yves Le Drian. Mon homologue américain Chuck Hagel est positif sur la question. »

 

Les industriels européens, à l’évidence, le sont beaucoup moins. « Nous sommes inquiets. Voir acheter des drones américains sans avoir au même moment un réel lancement de programme européen ou franco-britannique ou franco-allemand, cela ne peut pas nous réjouir », assurait le PDG de Dassault Aviation Eric Trappier à l’AFP au salon de l’aviation d’affaires EBACE, à Genève, le 20 mai. Un industriel français assure même qu’une commande de Reaper signifie l’abandon de toute offre européenne sur le segment des drones MALE.

 

Jean-Yves Le Drian, lui, n’a pas varié d’un iota : s’il appelle à la constitution d’un « club Reaper » pour mieux s’organiser entre clients européens du drone américain (Royaume-Uni, Italie, et peut-être bientôt Allemagne et France), il assure toujours croire en un programme européen de drone MALE « de troisième génération », qui rassemblerait les industriels européens sur une machine plus performante que le Reaper. Et tant pis si le marché potentiel ne dépasse pas 30 à 40 appareils en Europe, avec des ventes export hautement hypothétique vu la machine de guerre américaine et la puissance des acteurs israéliens : « Il faut garder la capacité d’innovation européenne sur ce segment », assure le ministre.

 

Que penser de cette commande de Reaper, au moment où les armées se doivent à nouveau se serrer leur ceinture ? Foin de mauvaise foi : il n’y avait pas de solution européenne de drone MALE dans les délais imposés par le besoin opérationnel. Le seul choix qui s’offre à la France à court terme, c’est de choisir sa dépendance : vis-à-vis des Etats-Unis en choisissant le Reaper ; vis-à-vis d’Israël si la solution de Dassault (une francisation du Heron TP) était retenue. « Nous dépendons déjà des drones américains au Mali, qui nous fournissent des images », souligne Jean-Yves Le Drian.

 

Acheter américain, ce n'est pas la solution idéale, mais c'est la solution la plus rapide, et quelque part la plus logique si l'on veut équiper les forces au plus vite. Tout l’enjeu est désormais de voir si gouvernements et industriels européens se mettront d’accord pour lancer un programme européen de drones MALE. Les Etats doivent accepter d’investir dans ce secteur stratégique malgré la pression budgétaire ; les industriels doivent accepter de mettre en veilleuse leur désastreuse concurrence intra-européenne, et de travailler ensemble, un peu à l’image du démonstrateur de drone de combat nEUROn. Pour résumer le sentiment général, ce n’est pas gagné.

 

Concernant le prix estimé de la commande, il est assez cohérent avec l’offre américaine que dévoilait la commission de défense du Sénat en novembre 2011 : la commission estimait à 297 millions d’euros le coût de 7 drones francisés, plus deux stations-sols et 10 ans de maintien en condition opérationnelle. Dans le détail, les drones étaient estimés à 209 millions, et la francisation à 88 millions. 670 millions d’euros pour douze drones, c’est un peu plus cher, mais dans le même ordre de grandeur.  C’est surtout le prix de près de deux décennies d’errements stratégiques des militaires, de la DGA, des industriels et des politiques.

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12 juin 2013 3 12 /06 /juin /2013 19:55
Le Bourget 2013 : le drone Neuron de Dassault en vedette

12/06/2013 Par Guillaume Steuer – Air & Cosmos

 

Le Neuron n'avait jusqu'alors été présenté au Bourget que sous forme de maquette.

 

Ce devrait être l'une des vedettes de cette nouvelle édition du salon du Bourget, qui ouvrira ses portes dès lundi prochain pour les professionnels. Le démonstrateur de drone de combat européen Neuron, qui a fait son vol inaugural le 1er décembre 2012, devrait en effet être présent "en chair et en os" au salon alors qu'il n'avait jusqu'alors été présenté que sous forme de maquette. Dassault Aviation, maître d'oeuvre du programme, n'a pas encore officiellement confirmé cette présence mais pourrait le faire dès la fin de cette semaine à l'occasion d'une conférence de presse pré-Bourget.

 

Cette présence symbolique permettra de marquer l'entrée de l'Europe (et de Dassault) dans le club très fermé des concepteurs d'aéronefs de combat furtifs. Elle offrira aussi aux industriels partenaires du programme une occasion de montrer le fruit de leurs travaux aux délégations des différentes nations (France, mais aussi Italie, Espagne, Grèce, Suisse et Suède) ayant financé les 405 millions d'euros qui ont été nécessaires pour lancer le projet en 2006. La présence du drone au Bourget aura sans doute un petit impact sur le calendrier d'essais prévu à l'origine mais, à l'aube d'une nouvelle loi de programmation militaire qui déterminera l'avenir de l'industrie de l'aviation de combat française, le jeu en vaut certainement la chandelle.

 

Avant de rejoindre le Bourget, le drone Neuron a passé plusieurs semaines dans la chambre anéchoïque "Solange" mise en oeuvre par la DGA sur son site de Bruz, en Bretagne. Des essais qui ont permis de mesurer avec précision la signature équivalente radar (SER) de l'engin avant de pouvoir enchaîner sur une campagne d'essais en vol qui devrait avoir lieu depuis Istres, mais aussi en Sardaigne et en Suède.

photo dassault-aviation.com

photo dassault-aviation.com

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12 juin 2013 3 12 /06 /juin /2013 07:20
An artist's rendering of Northrop Grumman's MQ-8C Fire Scout UAV, which is based on the Bell 407 Jet Ranger airframe. The C version is larger than the MQ-8B Fire Scout already in the fleet. (Northrop Grumman)

An artist's rendering of Northrop Grumman's MQ-8C Fire Scout UAV, which is based on the Bell 407 Jet Ranger airframe. The C version is larger than the MQ-8B Fire Scout already in the fleet. (Northrop Grumman)

Jun. 11, 2013 - By CHRISTOPHER P. CAVAS  - Defense news

 

Airframe Based on Bell Jet Ranger

 

WASHINGTON — There’s a new Fire Scout in the pipeline — bigger, faster, longer legs, more muscle. It’s still being assembled and won’t fly until later this year, but it’s headed for the fleet as soon as late 2014. And it could fundamentally change some of the parameters expected of the US Navy’s seagoing unmanned helicopter program.

 

The MQ-8 Fire Scout program has been under development for about a decade. A key factor for the aircraft was its small size, making it exceptionally handy to store and operate aboard ship.

 

The Navy often presents the diminutive Northrop Grumman aircraft as taking up about half the space of the H-60 Seahawk helos routinely deployed on surface combatants. And frigates are deploying with four MQ-8B Fire Scouts. Littoral combat ships are intended to routinely deploy with one or two Fire Scouts in addition to an H-60.

 

But something more was needed, and in 2011, US Africa Command and Special Operations Command (SOCOM) submitted an urgent needs request for an aircraft with more range and payload for their maritime-based ISR.

 

Northrop Grumman, before selecting the Schweizer 333 helicopter as the basis for its original Fire Scout bid, had evaluated the larger Bell 407 Jet Ranger, an aircraft familiar to Navy rotary flight school trainees as the TH-57 Sea Ranger.

 

To meet the new need for the larger UAV, the company proposed switching to the larger bird, but keeping the systems, electronics and ground control stations developed for the smaller helo. A demonstrator, dubbed Fire-X, was developed at company expense to show off the concept.

 

The Pentagon was impressed, and in the spring of 2012, Northrop received a contract for the first batch of up to 30 MQ-8C Fire Scouts using the basic Jet Ranger air frame.

 

“The new system kept the sensors, communications and software of the smaller Fire Scout, with about 80 to 90 percent commonality with the B,” said Capt. Chris Corgnati, head of unmanned aircraft systems under the deputy chief of naval operations for information dominance (N2/N6). “But there was a different air frame, engine and rotor head.”

 

The new Fire Scout C is bigger — 10 feet longer than the B’s 31.7 feet, a foot higher, and with an operational ceiling 3,000 feet lower than the smaller helo’s 20,000 feet. But the C can fly at 140 knots over the B’s 110; has an internal payload of 1,000 pounds over the B’s 600 pounds; has a gross takeoff weight of 6,000 pounds compared with the B’s 3,150 pounds; and can stay aloft 11 to 14 hours versus the smaller vehicle’s endurance of four to five hours.

 

“The C will have approximately twice the capability of the B — time on station, payloads — and provides for additional growth, including radar,” said Capt. Patrick Smith, Fire Scout program manager at the Naval Air Systems Command. “And because of more endurance, it should have less impact on the crew, who can launch, then recover, the aircraft eight hours later.”

 

With the change, the Navy has ended procurement of the B model at 30 aircraft, with the last two to be delivered this year. While the Bs will continue to operate, Smith said, there are no further plans to buy the smaller aircraft.

 

Instead, the Navy intends to order a total of 30 Cs — two test aircraft plus 28 operational aircraft — under an “endurance upgrade.” The first test helicopter is still at Bell’s facility in Ozark, Ala., Smith said, and is expected to be shipped in mid-June to begin tests at the naval air warfare center at Point Mugu, Calif. The first flight of the type is planned for September, with the program aiming to reach initial operating capability in late 2014.

 

The first at-sea deployment of the C is planned for a destroyer in support of SOCOM, Smith and Corgnati said, and operations from frigates and “all air-capable ships,” including joint high speed vessels, will be studied. But the overall focus continues to be on the LCS.

 

“The future and main driver for the entire Fire Scout program is LCS,” Corgnati said. “That we can support special operations forces in the interim is [a] bonus.”

 

But will the larger helo fit on the Navy’s other surface combatants?

 

“We can store two aircraft on a frigate, a destroyer or an LCS, on one side of the hangar,” said George Vardoulakis, Northrop’s vice president for tactical unmanned systems. “That’s essentially what we’re doing with the Bs as well.

 

“We’ve modeled it, we’re very confident that we will be hangaring two 8Cs in the space of a 60,” he said. “Operational, not broken down. Absolutely.”

 

Corgnati admitted there are space challenges, but he also noted that the increased capabilities of the C could mean fewer aircraft would need to be carried.

 

“Nominally [with the B] you have four-hour aircraft doing 24/7 operations, and you’re launching and recovering every three hours,” he said. “You back that off with an eight-hour platform doing similar coverage.”

 

He already envisions frigate deployments with three Cs rather than the now-standard 4 Bs.

 

Neither the Navy nor Northrop Grumman would comment on a revised cost-per-aircraft for the C, since the price depends on how many are bought. The airframe represents about 15 percent of each aircraft’s cost, Vardoulakis said, and he expects the unit price to rise roughly by about $1 million for the larger C. The more aircraft that are bought, the lesser the cost, particularly in later years, he said.

 

Earlier cost figures had been based on the Navy requirement for 168 Bs.

 

“We’re certainly worried those lower quantities will impact our costs significantly,” he said.

 

Northrop is excited, however, about the possibilities with the larger aircraft.

 

“We’re marketing this aircraft for Marine Corps and Army missions,” Vardoulakis said. “Those offerings have a significantly smaller fuel tank in the center of the aircraft and volume available for storage or medevac.

 

“There are no active proposals for the Marines and Army,” he said. “We just see a great opportunity for synergy within [the Defense Department] for an aircraft in this class.”

 

For the Navy, a decision point is coming on whether to continue buying Cs or begin a competition for another aircraft.

 

“We have a desire to move to a single model,” Corgnati said. “We fully intend to use the Bs for their full service life. The initial LCS deployments will be with the B, then you’re going to see a mix over the next number of years of Bs and Cs deployed on platforms. As you go through natural attrition, the Bs will atrophy to the C or another follow-on.”

 

A decision on the way ahead is at least “several months” off, Corgnati said.

 

“Could be we go back out and do a new-start competition?” he said. Pending evaluation of the new aircraft, “everything’s on the table; there’s nothing decided at this point.”

MQ-8B Fire Scout aboard USS Simpson (FFG 56)

MQ-8B Fire Scout aboard USS Simpson (FFG 56)

Smaller Fire Scout Getting Bigger Punch

 

Improvements continue to be made to the smaller MQ-8B version of the Navy’s Fire Scout unmanned aerial vehicle, including a new effort to arm the diminutive helicopter.

 

“We’re doing another rapid deployment capability in response to an urgent-needs request from 5th Fleet [in the Middle East],” said Capt. Patrick Smith, Fire Scout program manager with Naval Air Systems Command. “We’re integrating the Advanced Precision Kill Weapons System on to the B.”

 

The weapon system uses precision guidance to shoot 2.75-inch folding-fin Hydra-70 rockets with laser-guided pinpoint accuracy. It would give the Fire Scout — hitherto used largely for intelligence, surveillance and reconaissance missions — an impressive, if limited, attack capability.

 

The $40 million rapid-response program, begun in late 2011, includes development and testing along with six aircraft modification kits, Smith said. Each kit includes pylon arms and launchers to be fitted externally, and an internal wiring kit.

 

Aircraft are not intended to be permanently modified, but the system would be installed in theater or prior to deployment, he said.

 

The Navy tested similarly-sized rockets on an early RQ-8A Fire Scout in 2005, but those tests were with unguided weapons. The APKWS uses a newer laser-guided 70mm rocket that’s been in production since 2010.

 

“There was only one launch pylon” on the earlier tests, Smith said. The APKWS uses two three-tube launchers, he said.

 

Current plans are to install the system on only the B model of the UAV and not the larger MQ-8C version.

 

“We’ve done initial analysis with the C to transfer that capability from the B,” Smith said. “But that’s not now a capability that’s going to be delivered on the C.”

NAVAIR-personnel-w APKWS MQ-8 Photo Kelly Schindler

NAVAIR-personnel-w APKWS MQ-8 Photo Kelly Schindler

Live-fire tests with the APKWS and the MQ-8B began in May in California, Smith said, and the service intends to complete the testing in June and then determine “deployment windows,” he said.

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11 juin 2013 2 11 /06 /juin /2013 19:55
photo USAF

photo USAF

11/06/2013, Michel Cabirol – LaTribune.fr

 

Le coût total de l'acquisition de ces 12 drones d'observation Reaper - soit le prix d'achat et le coût de leur "francisation" - est évalué par le ministère de la Défense à 670 millions d'euros. Deux Reaper pourraient entrer en service au Sahel d'ici à la fin de l'année.

 

Le ministre français de la Défense Jean-Yves Le Drian a annoncé mardi son intention d'acheter douze drones d'observation Reaper aux Etats-Unis, acquisition évaluée par ses services à 670 millions d'euros. Il a précisé lors d'un déjeuner de presse que, dans un premier temps, il voulait acheter deux Reaper ainsi qu'une station sol fabriqués par General Atomics, pour parer aux besoins urgents des forces armées françaises au Mali et dans la région du Sahel. "Il y a une nécessité opérationnelle immédiate", a-t-il précisé.

photo Armée de l'Air

photo Armée de l'Air

C'est pourquoi le ministre souhaite disposer de ces appareils avant la fin de l'année pour remplacer les drones Harfang technologiquement dépassés, notamment dans le domaine de la précision. "Nous sommes en train de passer un accord avec les Américains pour l'acquisition de deux Reaper d'observation pour les positionner sur l'espace sahélien", a-t-il expliqué. Cet accord reste cependant soumis à l'approbation du Congrès américain, a-t-il ajouté. Et de s'avouer serein sur le feu vert du Congrès. D'autant que le secrétaire d'Etat à la Défense américain Chuck Hagel, dont les services instruisant le dossier, est favorable à cette opération, a expliqué Jean-Yves Le Drian.

 

Francisation des Reaper ?

 

La France a également besoin de dix autres drones Reaper qui puissent opérer dans l'espace aérien français et européen, ce qui suppose que leurs moyens de transmission soient adaptés par des industriels européens. Là aussi, le Congrès devra donner son accord pour que la France ait accès aux "codes sources", codes informatiques de ce matériel militaire soumis à de strictes règles d'exportation, afin de le modifier. Le Pentagone est favorable et "si on s'y prend dans le bon sens, ça devrait se débloquer"', a estimé Jean-Yves Le Drian. On a senti moins optimiste sur cette deuxième phase. "J'espère que cela ira", a-t-il avoué. A défaut d'accord du Congrès, la France pourrait se tourner vers un drone israélien, a cependant ajouté le ministre.

 

Le coût total de l'acquisition de ces 12 drones MALE (pour moyenne altitude, longue endurance, soit 24 heures de vol), soit le prix d'achat et le coût de leur "francisation", est évalué par les services du ministère à 670 millions d'euros. Elle doit être inscrite dans la loi de programmation militaire pour la période 2014-2019 qui sera présentée au parlement à l'automne.

 

Une filière européenne ?

 

A plus longue échéance, "il faut préparer avec les Européens le drone MALE de troisième génération", a estimé Jean-Yves Le Drian, qui évalue le marché à 30 ou 40 drones en Europe. Selon lui, la Pologne pourrait à terme avoir besoin de ce type de drones, qu'utilisent déjà l'Allemagne, la France, la Grande-Bretagne et l'Italie. Pour autant, certains observateurs restent sceptiques sur la constitution d'une filière industrielle : le marché européen, déjà difficile à unifier, reste trop étroit et un drone MALE est un programme relativement modeste pour accepter de nombreux partenaires.

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11 juin 2013 2 11 /06 /juin /2013 18:55
Serval : 100e vol opérationnel du drone Harfang

11/06/2013 Sources : EMA

 

Dans la nuit du 5 au 6 juin 2013,  le drone Harfang a effectué sa centième sortie en soutien de l’opération Serval.

 

Engagé depuis le 17 janvier en soutien des opérations françaises au Mali, le détachement Harfang de l’escadron de drones 1/33 « Belfort » a effectué un peu plus de 1600 heures de vol, de jour comme de nuit.

Serval : 100e vol opérationnel du drone Harfang

Depuis le début des opérations au Mali, le drone Harfang est régulièrement engagé en soutien des opérations de forces françaises au sol . Apportant une contribution conséquente au recueil de renseignement sur le théâtre grâce à ses capteurs et à sa persistance sur zone, le Harfang contribue également à l’acquisition de cibles au profit des aéronefs de l’armée de l’Air et de la Marine nationale. Grâce à l’illuminateur laser embarqué sur le drone, les équipages ont ainsi guidé sur leur objectif des bombes de précision tirées par d’autres vecteurs.

Serval : 100e vol opérationnel du drone Harfang

Le détachement Harfang a été engagé dans toutes les phases de l’opération et sur tout le théâtre. Il a couvert en une centaine de vols opérationnels un large spectre de missions et a ainsi nettement contribué aux succès tactiques de l’opération Serval.

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11 juin 2013 2 11 /06 /juin /2013 17:30
Elisra to unveil UAS self-protection suite

Jun. 11, 2013 by Arie Egozi – FG

 

Tel Aviv - Elisra is to unveil a new self-protection suite for unmanned air systems during the 17-23 June Paris air show.

 

The Elbit Systems company says it has developed the SPS-65V5 system using experience gained by producing a wide range of electronic warfare and signals intelligence equipment for manned fighters, utility aircraft and helicopters operated by numerous nations.

 

Elisra general manager Edgar Maimon says the increased global use of UAS is accompanied by a growing demand to provide such assets with survivability capabilities to protect their mission, the platform and its valuable sensors.

Elbit Hermes 900 UAV – photo Elbit Systems

Elbit Hermes 900 UAV – photo Elbit Systems

The self-protection equipment could be used with types including the Hermes 900 tactical UAS

 

Described as being capable of protecting unmanned aircraft against "a great variety of threats" in a hostile area, the new self-protection system is suitable for integration with a variety of types, ranging in size from tactical to high-altitude, long-endurance UAS, the company says.

 

The specific capabilities of the SPS-65V5 are classified, it adds.

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11 juin 2013 2 11 /06 /juin /2013 16:45
Le drone Algérien Amel fin prêt pour le vol inaugural en Juillet prochain

25 Mai 2013 Aeronautiquedz.com

 

C'est l’aérodrome de l’ex-Alat à l'est de Sidi Bel-Abbès qu'aura lieu, au mois de juillet prochain, le vol inaugural du premier drone algérien, baptisé Amel. Le drone est réalisé par une jeune équipe de scientifiques et techniciens nationaux relevant de la plate-forme technologique de Bou-Ismaïl rapporte le journal La voix de l'oranie.

 

La conception et la construction du drone ont été lancées en 2010. 36 mois ont été nécessaires pour la réalisation des composantes embarquées, électronique et informatique. La conception est entièrement algérienne selon la même source. Les concepteurs indiquent qu’une fois opérationnel, il aura une autonomie de vol de 6 heures sur une distance de 200km et une altitude de 3.500 mètres, et ce, à partir de son point de guidage et de contrôle terrestre.

 

Toujours dans le domaine de construction aéronautique, l’Algérie aurait conclu un contrat d’achat de brevets canadiens en vue de la réalisation de deux types d’avions civils, l’un pour les travaux agricoles aériens et la surveillance des départs d’incendie, l’autre pour le transport des voyageurs avec une capacité d’accueil à son bord de plus de 100 passagers.

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10 juin 2013 1 10 /06 /juin /2013 11:55
MQ-9 Reaper flies above Creech AFB - photo USAF

MQ-9 Reaper flies above Creech AFB - photo USAF

June 10, 2013: Strategy Page

 

France is apparently not pleased with the performance of its locally developed Harfang UAV and is buying two American RQ-9 Reapers with the intention getting more and standardizing on this proven UAV design. Currently two Harfang UAVs are present in Mali (operating from neighboring Niger) and some American RQ-9s are helping out as well. France wants the RQ-9s as quickly as possible and apparently this sale is dependent on the U.S. being able to deliver the RQ-9s before the end of the year.

 

The MQ-9 Reaper is a 4.7 ton, 11.6 meters (36 foot) long aircraft with a 21.3 meters (66 foot) wingspan that looks like the MQ-1 Predator. It has six hard points and can carry 682 kg (1,500 pounds) of weapons. These include Hellfire missiles (up to eight), two Sidewinder or two AMRAAM air-to-air missiles, two Maverick missiles, or two 227 kg (500 pound) smart bombs (laser or GPS guided). Max speed is 400 kilometers an hour, and max endurance is 15 hours. The Reaper is considered a combat aircraft, to replace F-16s or A-10s in many situations.

Hargfang photo Armee de l Air

Hargfang photo Armee de l Air

The Harfang was based on the Israeli Heron Shoval UAV which in turn is very similar to the MQ-1 and is selling well to foreign customers who cannot obtain the MQ-1. In addition to being one of the primary UAVs for many armed forces (Israel, India, Turkey, Russia, France, Brazil, El Salvador) the United States, Canada, and Australia have either bought, leased, or licensed manufacture of the Heron. Meanwhile France has bought four Harfang ("Eagle") UAVs and used them in Afghanistan, Libya and Mali over the last four years.

The Shoval weighs about the same (1.2 tons) as the Predator and has similar endurance (40 hours). Shoval has a slightly higher ceiling (10 kilometers/30,000 feet, versus 8 kilometers) and software which allows it to automatically take off, carry out a mission, and land automatically. Not all American large UAVs can do this. Both Predator and Shoval cost about the same ($5 million), although the Israelis are willing to be more flexible on price. Shoval does have a larger wingspan (16.5 meters/51 feet) than the Predator (13.2 meters/41 feet) and a payload of about 137 kg (300 pounds). The French version costs about $25 million each (including sensors and development costs).

 

Israel also developed a larger version of the Heron, the 4.6 ton Heron TP. This is similar to the American RQ-9, but with a lot less combat experience, and more expensive. Some Heron TP tech was incorporated into Harfang and France was going to buy some Heron TPs, even though MQ-9s were offered for more than 20 percent less. Now France plans to switch to the RQ-9 because they are seen as more reliable and capable.

Eitan (Heron TP) drone source Defense Update

Eitan (Heron TP) drone source Defense Update

The Heron TP entered squadron service in the Israeli Air Force four years ago. The UAV's first combat service was three years ago, when it was used off the coast of Gaza, keeping an eye on ships seeking to run the blockade. For that kind of work the aircraft was well suited. But so are smaller and cheaper UAVs.

 

Development of the Heron TP was largely completed six years ago, mainly for the export market, and the Israeli military was in no rush to buy it. There have been some export sales and the Israeli air force eventually realized that this was an ideal UAV for long range operations or for maritime patrol. But it turned out there were few missions like that.

 

Equipped with a powerful (1,200 horsepower) turboprop engine, the Heron TP can operate at 14,500 meters (45,000 feet). That is above commercial air traffic and all the air-traffic-control regulations that discourage, and often forbid, UAVs fly at the same altitude as commercial aircraft. The Heron TP has a one ton payload, enabling it to carry sensors that can give a detailed view of what's on the ground, even from that high up. The endurance of 36 hours makes the Heron TP a competitor for the U.S. MQ-9. The big difference between the two is that Reaper is designed to be a combat aircraft, operating at a lower altitude, with less endurance, and able to carry a ton of smart bombs or missiles. Heron TP is meant mainly for reconnaissance and surveillance, and Israel wants to keep a closer, and more persistent, eye on Syria and southern Lebanon. But the Heron TP has since been rigged to carry a wide variety of missiles and smart bombs.

 

The U.S. will not provide Predators or Reapers weapons ready, forcing foreign users to develop their own equipment for arming the UAVs. France also, like other Predator and Reaper users, has to spend a lot of money to develop satellite link technology and set up a ground control facility (or pay to use the American one in the United States or, possibly, the new control center just opened in Britain)

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7 juin 2013 5 07 /06 /juin /2013 10:55
MQ-9 Reaper flies above Creech AFB - photo USAF

MQ-9 Reaper flies above Creech AFB - photo USAF

05/06 Alain Ruello, Chef adjoint du service Industrie, en charge de la Défense – LesEchos.fr

 

L'achat programmé de deux drones de renseignement américains condamne très probablement l'émergence d'une filière européenne autonome en ce domaine.

 

Le très médiatique feuilleton des drones de renseignement devrait connaître dans quelques mois son épilogue : la France va acheter deux Reaper, fabriqués par l'américain General Atomics, dans le cadre de la procédure Foreign Military Sales, qui régit les ventes d'armements américains de gouvernement à gouvernement. Si tout se déroule comme prévu, les militaires disposeront d'ici à la fin de l'année de deux aéronefs sans pilote modernes pour aller traquer les djihadistes dans le Sahara. La relève des obsolètes Harfang d'EADS sera assurée.

 

Dans une récente tribune, Jean-Yves Le Drian, le ministre de la Défense, a pu avec raison se féliciter d'une décision qui va permettre à l'armée française de combler un manque patent (« Les Echos » du 31 mai). « Les drones défraient la chronique depuis plusieurs années. Malgré des préconisations répétées depuis 1999, leur poids dans les investissements […] est resté limité. » Avant d'ajouter, toujours à juste titre, que « l'ensemble de la communauté de défense, le ministère autant que l'industrie, a manqué le virage de ce type d'équipement. Et ce qui est vrai en France l'est aussi en Europe ». « Nous ne pouvons plus attendre », résume-t-il.

 

Pour dire les choses autrement : l'industrie européenne n'ayant rien à proposer et les drones - « pièces maîtresses du renseignement » - étant désormais incontournables en opération, la seule solution est de se fournir à l'étranger. Et ce qui se fait de mieux à l'étranger, c'est aux Etats-Unis qu'on le trouve, même si la France poursuit des négociations parallèles avec Israël, l'autre pays en pointe sur le sujet, pour un éventuel plan B.

 

Naturellement, la première question qui vient à l'esprit de ceux qui ne sont pas familiers avec le dossier est de savoir comment on a pu en arriver à un tel désastre au pays du Rafale. Plusieurs explications peuvent être avancées : des pays - France et Allemagne - incapables d'accorder leurs violons ; des industriels - EADS et Dassault - qui se détestent même pas cordialement ; des politiques qui ont laissé pourrir le dossier depuis dix ans. Vient la deuxième interrogation, la plus importante car regarder dans le rétroviseur ne sert pas à grand-chose : acheter américain condamne-t-il l'émergence d'une filière de drone de renseignement européenne autonome ? Et là, n'en déplaise à tous ceux qui veulent encore y croire, la réponse est très probablement oui.

 

Le Livre blanc de la défense a fixé à 12 le nombre de drones de renseignement de l'armée à terme. Urgence oblige, les deux premiers seront donc des Reaper identiques à ceux produits pour le Pentagone. Pour les dix suivants, la piste engagée - la plus logique parce qu'il n'y a rien de plus coûteux que de multiplier les fournisseurs - c'est de continuer à se fournir chez General Atomics. Mais en intégrant des équipements français, pour faire en sorte, notamment, que les drones puissent voler en Europe.

 

La Direction générale de l'armement (DGA) doit vérifier avec les Etats-Unis la faisabilité technique et commerciale de tout cela. Ce qui va demander du temps. L'armée passera alors commande et les livraisons des Reaper « francisés » s'étaleront jusqu'en 2018 au moins. Comme ils resteront en service dix voire quinze ans, la conclusion est évidente : General Atomics a un très bel avenir en France.

 

Dans sa tribune, Jean-Yves Le Drian n'entre pas dans ces détails, de peur sans doute de jeter de l'huile sur le feu dans le camp des opposants au « buy american ». Officiellement, l'achat de drones américains fait figure de solution « provisoire ». On connaît la chanson : étant donné l'échelle de temps des programmes d'armement, provisoire veut souvent dire définitif. Impossible pour le ministre de la Défense de le reconnaître, car ce n'est pas politiquement correct. Au contraire, l'intéressé ressasse la piste d'une coopération européenne pour, dit-il, « ne pas faire obstacle à l'avenir ». L'Europe peut rattraper son retard si elle s'unit pour concevoir le drone de la génération d'après. Qui peut y croire ?

 

Pour cela, il faut que les armées de deux pays européens majeurs au moins définissent un besoin commun. Ca n'a pas marché jusque-là. Que s'opère ensuite un partage industriel intelligent pour éviter une catastrophe industrielle du type A400M. Pas gagné non plus vu les relations entre les impétrants. Petit détail qui compte : il n'y a absolument pas d'argent ni en France, ni en Allemagne, ni au Royaume-Uni, et encore moins en Italie, pour lancer un tel programme, forcément coûteux. Et puis, qui peut penser que General Atomics va rester les bras croisés ? Pendant que les Européens en sont encore à se demander comment ils pourraient éventuellement se mettre d'accord, les ingénieurs américains imaginent déjà la suite…

 

Mais surtout, à quoi bon ? Quand bien même un programme serait lancé, on ne dépassera pas les 30 exemplaires produits. Tout le monde le sait, mais personne ne le dit : il n'y a pas de modèle économique valable pour un drone européen de renseignement concurrentiel à l'export. Contrairement aux missiles ou aux avions de combat, ce n'est pas structurant pour l'industrie européenne d'armement. Trop tard. Trop cher. Trop peu de débouchés.

 

Dans cette affaire, Jean-Yves Le Drian agit de manière responsable, le besoin des militaires primant tout. Mais il agit aussi en politique. En agitant la piste d'une coopération, il montre qu'il se soucie du long terme. Tout en sachant très bien que ce futur drone européen n'est pas près de décoller…

Les points à retenir

Le Livre blanc de la défense a fixé à 12 le nombre de drones de renseignement de l'armée, à terme.

Faute de solution européenne, les deux premiers seront des Reaper identiques à ceux produits pour le Pentagone.

Pour les dix suivants, la piste engagée - la plus logique car il n'y a rien de plus coûteux que de multiplier les fournisseurs - est de continuer à se fournir chez l'américain General Atomics.

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3 juin 2013 1 03 /06 /juin /2013 07:30
Elbit  Hermes 900 UAV – photo Elbit Systems

Elbit Hermes 900 UAV – photo Elbit Systems

TEL AVIV, Israel, April 26 (UPI)

 

Israel, which has the most advanced defense industry in the Middle East, is in the forefront of the rapidly expanding drone business that's changing the way wars will be fought for decades to come.

 

With state-owned Israel Aircraft Industries, Elbit Systems and Aeronautics Defense Systems developing new and more agile unmanned aerial vehicles, as well as ground and seaborne drones, the Jewish state seems well-placed to corner a big slice of a market valued at around $50 billion a year.

 

Indeed, Israel's widely considered to be the leading UAV exporter in the world, selling units and associated technology as far afield as India, Russia, Nigeria and Mexico.

 

The Stockholm International Peace Research Institute said Israeli companies were behind 41 percent of all UAVs exported in 2001-11. Those Israeli exports went to 24 countries, including the United States.

 

That volume's expected to expand as production costs are relatively low. Israeli industry officials boast that it's significantly cheaper to buy an advanced UAV than it is to train an air force pilot.

 

"In recent years, there have been more pilotless sorties than piloted ones in the Israeli air force," observed Ophir Shoham, an army reserve brigadier general who heads the Defense Ministry's Research and Development division known by the Hebrew acronym Mafat.

 

Shoham, who's had the job for three years, is responsible for the ministry's program to develop advanced technology for rockets, missile interception, satellites and unmanned systems.

 

"Within a few years there will be a number of operational missions of a known character that we will be able to carry out with a small number of unmanned devices," Shoham, the little-known "backroom boffin," told the Israeli daily Haaretz in a rare interview.

 

"That's the direction we're taking," he said. "Robots are not about to replace combat soldiers -- that's a bit far off -- but yes, we'll operate unmanned vehicles on the ground against highly dangerous targets.

 

"I refer to targets in enemy territory against which we can send such vehicles remotely, as a kind of forward guard -- vehicles that both observe and shoot. We will witness this in the foreseeable future."

 

Israel's military has long used UAVs for intelligence-gathering operations in the fight against Palestinian militants and the Iranian-backed Hezbollah in Lebanon.

 

The Israelis also pioneered the use of missile-armed drones to assassinate key militant leaders.

 

But it was the Americans who developed UAVs like General Atomic's MQ-1 Predator as killer drones in their war against al-Qaida since the attacks on the United States Sept. 11, 2001.

 

The first such assassination mission was in Yemen in November 2002.

 

Israel's pioneering work with UAVs dates back to 1970. The first major combat role for the UAVs, namely an early variant called the Scout, was in the June 1982 Israeli invasion of Lebanon.

 

The Israelis used Scouts from Israel's first UAV unit, Squadron 200, as decoys to lure Syrian surface-to-air missiles sites in Lebanon, thinking the UAVs were combat aircraft, to lock on their radar systems, exposing their positions.

 

Israeli warplanes knocked out all 19 batteries over a two-day period, during which Israeli fighters shot down 85 Syrian aircraft for no loss.

 

The Scout was built by Israel Aircraft Industries, IAI's original incarnation.

 

In addition to exports, Israeli defense firms set up subsidiaries in consumer countries "to target markets, rather than expand local manufacturing," Israel's Haaretz daily observed in 2009.

Orbiter_MUAV_2

Orbiter_MUAV_2

One example is the Aerostar and Orbiter 2M aerial drones being manufactured in Azerbaijan by Azad Systems Co., a joint venture between Israel's Aeronautics and the Azeri Defense Ministry.

 

Oil-rich Azerbaijan, which borders Iran, has become a key Israeli ally.

 

"There are three explanations for Israel's success in becoming a world leader in development and production of UAVs," a senior Israeli official told The Jerusalem Post.

 

"We have unbelievable people and innovation, combat experience that helps us understand what we need and immediate operational use since we're always in a conflict which allows us to perfect our systems."

 

Shoham gets the last word. Developing the UAV, he says, "was one of Israel's best investments.

 

"It led to the development of a tremendous technological infrastructure in the country. It's important to us to maintain our place in the forefront of world technology.

 

"This is the key to development in the coming generations as well."

Heron TP photo Israel Aerospace Industries

Heron TP photo Israel Aerospace Industries

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3 juin 2013 1 03 /06 /juin /2013 07:25
Venezuela launches drones built with Iran's technical assistance

Jun 2, 2013 presstv.ir

 

Venezuela has launched drones produced with Iran’s technical assistance in an effort to step up the fight against drug trafficking in the Latin American country.

 

Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro made the announcement during a ceremony, stating that the drones will be used to monitor Venezuela's borders.

 

Late Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez said in January 2012 that his country had manufactured its first unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), dubbed Arpia-001 (Harpy-001), in cooperation with Iranian experts.

 

The UAV has a 100-kilometer (60-mile) sweep and can fly solo for some 90 minutes and reach an altitude of 3,000 meters (9,000 feet).

 

Iran has made important breakthroughs in its defense sector in recent years and attained self-sufficiency in producing important military equipment and systems.

 

Iran unveiled its latest indigenous UAV, a reconnaissance and combat drone dubbed Hamaseh (Epic) in May 2013.

 

On December 17, 2012, Commander of the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC)’s Navy Rear Admiral Ali Fadavi said Iran had launched the production line of ScanEagle drones.

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31 mai 2013 5 31 /05 /mai /2013 12:20
ING Robotic Aviation announced as Canada's Reseller for Huginn X1 UAV

May 29, 2013 ASDNews Source : ING Robotic Aviation

 

ING Robotic Aviation is proud to announce that it has just entered into a partnership with Anthea Technologies to become the sole Canadian reseller of the Huginn X1 ‘quad rotor’ vertical takeoff and landing unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV).  The X1 is an outstanding platform in terms of reliability, cost and flexibility, and is the best quad rotor on the market today.  In addition to sales of the platform, ING can also organize training and offer operational advice for the end user.

 

The X1 is an easy to carry and simple to use UAV that is ideal for defence and public safety applications.  Small teams can easily use the system to greatly enhance their situational awareness in a wide range of applications including tactical surveillance, forensic crime scene investigation, search for missing persons and much more. The platform provides its user the ability to receive useful data, while simultaneously focusing on the task at hand.

 

“We are platform agnostic” says Ian Glenn, CEO of ING Robotic Aviation.  “Simply put, our job is to make sure that the right information gets into the right hands at the right time.  So we source the optimal equipment for the job.  The X1 is the right equipment, and we are proud to be able to offer this system in Canada.”

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30 mai 2013 4 30 /05 /mai /2013 16:50
Finnish Orbiter UAS deliveries take off

28 May 2013 by  Arie Egozi – FG

 

Tel Aviv - Deliveries of the Orbiter 2 mini unmanned air system (UAS) to Finland are under way.

 

The Finnish defence ministry in 2012 selected the Aeronautics Defense Systems design to meet its operational needs. Its contract includes 52 systems, with each comprising four air vehicles and a ground control station.

 

The Orbiter 2 has a 3m (9.8ft) wingspan and a 1m long fuselage. With a 10kg (22lb) maximum take-off weight, it offers an endurance of 3.5h.

 

According to Dany Eshchar, Aeronautics' deputy chief executive for marketing and sales, 20 systems will be supplied by the end of the year.

Finnish Orbiter UAS deliveries take off

The firm also reveals that Finland is showing interest in the company's larger Orbiter 3, which has an endurance of 7-8h. It is equipped with a 3kg payload, but this will soon be replaced by a more advanced cooled electro-optical/infrared sensor that will produce better quality images.

 

Suitable for intelligence, surveillance, target acquisition and reconnaissance duties, the Orbiter 3 is launched from a catapult and recovered using a parachute and airbag.

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30 mai 2013 4 30 /05 /mai /2013 12:35
source FG

source FG

May 30, 2013: Strategy Page

 

A year ago a Japanese warship passed by a Chinese frigate that appeared to be flying a helicopter UAV (unmanned aerial vehicle) off its helicopter pad. The Japanese took photos and passed them around. At first it was noted that the helicopter looked like the Schiebel S-100 Camcopter. Schiebel is an Austrian firm which markets the S-100 in many countries via the U.S. firm Boeing Aircraft. But Schiebel continues to sell the S-100 itself, and a little digging revealed that the Chinese had bought 18 S-100s in 2010. While the three S-100s seen on the aft deck of the Chinese frigate do look like the S-100, there also appear to be some differences. It appears that a Chinese firm copied the design of S-100 and created a workable S-100 clone.

 

European nations are not supposed to sell China weapons (because of an arms embargo), but the S-100s were apparently sold to Chinese police organizations (which is legal and the S-100 does have civilian users). One Chinese firm has since offered a helicopter UAV similar to the S-100. China has become more blatant in copying foreign designs, and then selling them to foreign customers and competing with the original. Suing the Chinese usually does not work, as Chinese courts favor the Chinese copycats, not the original creator of the technology.

Schiebel S-100 Camcopter

Schiebel S-100 Camcopter

The S-100 weighs 200 kg (440 pounds), can stay aloft six hours per sortie, and operates at a max altitude of 5,500 meters (18,000 feet). Max speed is 220 kilometers an hour. So far, some 200 S-100s have been sold to military and civilian customers.

 

Before the S-100 clone came along Chinese firms had already developed several helicopter UAV designs. For example, the Chinese V750 weighs 757 kg (1,665 pounds) and has a payload of 80 kg (176 pounds). Max speed is 161 kilometers an hour and endurance is four hours. The V750 can fly a pre-programmed route or be controlled by a ground operator (up to 150 kilometers away). The manufacturer is offering the V750 for civilian (scientific survey, search and rescue, police surveillance) and military uses. There are over a dozen other Chinese helicopter UAVs on the market, many of them very similar in appearance and performance to foreign designs.

 

Meanwhile, the U.S. has taken the lead in this area, with several models developed in the last decade. The one most similar to V750 is the MQ-8B Fire Scout which is operating in Afghanistan and aboard warships. The U.S. Navy developed, and put into use, the MQ-8B. A similar model, the RQ-8B, died because the U.S. Army already had plenty of UAVs that got the job done. The navy kept Fire Scout because helicopters are more practical on most navy ships (for landings and takeoffs). Navy Fire Scouts have been successfully used on frigates (in both the Atlantic and Pacific). There is a huge demand for UAVs in Afghanistan, so the navy sent some there.

 

The 1.5 ton Fire Scout is based upon the Schweitzer 333 unmanned helicopter, which in turn is derived from the Schweitzer 330 commercial lightweight manned helicopter. Fire Scout has a payload of 272 kg (600 pounds), a cruising speed of 200 kilometers an hour, max altitude of 6,100 meters (20,000 feet), and endurance of eight hours. The U.S. Navy plans to acquire over 160 Fire Scouts.

 

Several other navies have been testing helicopter UAVs on their warships, and this type of UAV seems destined to replace a lot of manned helicopters on warships and enable smaller warships (that cannot handle the larger manned helicopters) to operate unmanned helicopters.

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30 mai 2013 4 30 /05 /mai /2013 12:20
RQ-11B Raven small Unmanned Aircraft System photo US Army

RQ-11B Raven small Unmanned Aircraft System photo US Army

.May 30, 2013: Strategy Page

 

With combat operations winding down in Afghanistan, the U.S. Army is cutting back on purchases of its popular  Raven micro-UAV. In the last decade the U.S. has bought most of the 19,000 Ravens produced. But now those purchases are fading to zero. Last year the army bought 1,134, this year it was 234 and next year it is zero. The reason why the army has bought so many Ravens is because this tiny (two kg/3.3 pound) rapidly wears out in combat. The Raven is made of Kevlar, the same material used in helmets and protective vests, but there are many ways for one to be lost in combat. On paper a Raven can survive about 200 landings before it can no longer be used. That’s in peacetime operations. In a combat zone few Ravens make it past fifty or so landings. While some Ravens have been shot down, the most common cause of loss is a problem with the communications link (as the aircraft flies out of range or behind something that interrupts the signal) or a software/hardware failure on the aircraft. Combat losses have been high, as nearly 20,000 have been built and most of those have been lost on the battlefield.

 

With much less combat expected in the next few years, the army is cutting orders for new Ravens and, in effect, living off existing stocks (over 5,000 Ravens) and resuming purchases only if a lot of troops are sent into combat. Raven, in effect, is being treated like ammunition, with much needed in peacetime than in wartime.

 

Despite the high loss rate the Raven is popular with combat and non-combat troops alike. In part this is because the army has developed better training methods, which enables operators to get more out of Raven more quickly. Combat troops use it for finding and tracking the enemy, while non-combat troops use it for security (guarding bases or convoys). In both cases troops have come to use the Raven for more than just getting a look over the hill or around the corner. The distinctive noise of a Raven overhead is very unpopular with the enemy below and is often used to scare the enemy away or make him move to where he can be more easily spotted.

 

The current model, the Raven B (RQ-11B), was introduced six years ago, a year after the original Raven entered service in large numbers. This UAV is inexpensive ($35,000 each). The Raven is battery powered (and largely silent unless flown close to the ground). It carries a color day vidcam or a two color infrared night camera. It can also carry a laser designator and a new gimbaled camera is being bought. The cameras broadcast real time video back to the operator, who controls the Raven via a handheld controller, which uses a hood to shield the display from direct sunlight (thus allowing the operator to clearly see what is on the ground). The Raven can go as fast as 95 kilometers an hour but usually cruises at between 40 and 50 kilometers an hour. It can go as far as 15 kilometers from its controller and usually flies a pre-programmed route, using GPS for navigation.

 

From the very beginning the Raven changed the way troops fight. With the bird's eye view of the battlefield, commanders can move their troops more quickly, confident that they won't be ambushed and often with certain knowledge of where the unseen enemy is. The big advantage with Raven is that it’s simple, reliable, and it just works. The UAV can be quickly taken apart and put into a backpack. It takes off by having the operator start the motor and then throwing it. This can be done from a moving vehicle and the Raven is a popular recon tool for convoys. It lands by coming in low and then turning the motor off. Special Forces troops like to use it at night because the enemy can’t see it and often can’t hear it either.

Puma unmanned aerial vehicle-launch

Puma unmanned aerial vehicle-launch

Last year the U.S. Army began using the larger (5.9 kg) Puma AE UAVs. Adopting Puma is part of an army effort to find micro-UAVs that are more effective than current models and just as easy to use. The Puma, a 5.9 kg (13 pound) UAV with a 2.6 meter (8.5 feet) wingspan and a range of 15 kilometers from the operator, has proved to be the next big (or micro) thing the army was looking for. Combat commanders quickly realized how useful Puma is and wanted more, as quickly as possible. This is not surprising as SOCOM (Special Operations Command) has been using Puma since 2008.

 

The army wants to equip each infantry company with a Puma system. That would mean 18 Puma AE UAVs per brigade and nearly 400 for the entire army. These larger UAVs have been most useful in route clearance (scouting ahead to spot ambushes, roadside bombs, landslides, washouts, or whatever). The larger Puma is particularly useful in Afghanistan, which is windier than Iraq and thus more difficult for the tiny Raven to operate.

 

Top speed for Puma is 87 kilometers an hour and cruising speed is 37-50 kilometers an hour. Max altitude is 3,800 meters (12,500 feet). Puma has a better vidcam (providing tilt, pan, and zoom) than the smaller Raven and that provides steadier and more detailed pictures. Because it is larger than Raven, and three times as heavy, Puma is much steadier in bad weather. Both Puma and Raven are battery powered.

 

Puma has been around for a decade but never got purchased in large quantities by anyone. The latest model uses a lot of proven tech from the Raven (both UAVs are made by the same company). Like the Raven, Puma is hand launched and can be quickly snapped together or apart. Another version, using a fuel cell, has been tested and was able to stay in the air for nine hours at a time. There is also a naval version that floats and is built to withstand exposure to salt water.

 

Each combat brigade is now supposed to have 35 mini-UAV systems (each with three UAVs, most of them Raven but at least ten of these systems are to be Pumas). That means that each combat brigade now has its own air force of over a hundred reconnaissance aircraft.

 

The army currently has nearly 7,000 UAVs. Over 6,000 are micro-UAVs like the Raven and Puma. These tiny (under six kg/13.2 pound) reconnaissance aircraft have become very popular with the troops, anyone of which can become an operator after a few hours of training. These tiny UAVs are a radical new military aircraft technology that took air recon to a new level. That level is low, a few hundred meters off the ground. The army has nearly 1,798 Raven and 325 Puma UAV systems in use by ground troops. A complete system (controller, spare parts, and three UAVs) costs $250,000 for the Raven and over $400,000 for Puma. These tiny aircraft have changed how the troops fight and greatly reduced army dependence on the air force for air reconnaissance. The lightweight, hand launched Raven UAV can only stay airborne about an hour per sortie, but troops have found that this is enough time to do all sorts of useful work, even when there's no fighting going on. This is most of the time. The heavier Puma can stay up for 120 minutes.

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30 mai 2013 4 30 /05 /mai /2013 11:20
Lab effort to cut costs for Navy's Triton UAS program

May 30, 2013 ASDNews Source : Naval Air Systems Command

 

An engineer at Naval Air Station Patuxent River is leading an initiative that will save the Navy’s MQ-4C Triton Unmanned Aircraft System program several hundred thousand dollars.

 

Paul Weinstein, an electronics engineer supporting the Common Standards and Interoperability (CSI) program office, launched an image quality lab in 2012 that will help determine how to effectively employ Triton’s sensors and radars and potentially other manned and unmanned systems.

 

In preparation for the first Triton image evaluation, Weinstein, a former National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency (NGA)employee, worked with the agency to provide the necessary training, software and image scientists for the first official evaluation of the P-8A aircraft’s Electro-Optical (EO) sensor. Since the P-8A and MQ-4C are part of the Maritime Patrol and Reconnaissance Force family of systems, Weinstein’s team made a decision to evaluate the P-8 first and include test engineers from both programs.

 

“Paul did an outstanding job getting this image quality assessment capability set up and running,” said Pat Ellis, MQ-4C Triton’s Mission Systems lead. “This will save the Triton program several hundred thousand dollars, since we will not have to submit packages for image ratings to NGA and the Office of Naval Intelligence (ONI) for our imaging systems.”

 

Without this capability at Pax River, the Navy would have to rely on NGA to perform sensor testing, at a cost of more than $150,000 per evaluation. It would also take more than a month to return the analysis to the team. By having the lab at Pax, each test is virtually free and it takes less than one week to turn around the data to the test team, Weinstein said.

 

“This level of testing will enable program offices to make smart budget decisions with respect to changes to the current network and current integration measures as well as future integration efforts,” Ellis said.

 

Typically, image analysts perform this function, but the evaluation proved that test engineers can analyze images and make effective mission-planning decisions.

 

“We are following the fly-fix-fly philosophy as we figure out solutions that will allow lower bandwidth platforms to send better quality video,” Weinstein added. “We need to understand if a platform can meet its mission and avoid it just flying out and burning fuel.”

 

The first imagery evaluation for MQ-4C Triton will be conducted after the team has data available from Triton’s first flight, which was conducted May 22 at Northrop Grumman’s facility in Palmdale, Calif. The image-quality lab team will evaluate the MQ-4C’s EO/Infrared (IR) and Synthetic Aperture Radar sensors.

 

“The ability to collect and share real-time Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR)  quickly and accurately is crucial to ensuring battle commanders have the enhanced situational awareness required for a successful mission,” said Capt. Jim Hoke, MQ-4C Triton program manager.

 

As an adjunct to the manned P-8 aircraft, Triton is intended to provide persistent maritime and littoral ISR data collection and dissemination capability to the fleet.

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30 mai 2013 4 30 /05 /mai /2013 07:20
Le Rapporteur spécial Christof Heyns. Photo ONU - Jean-Marc Ferré

Le Rapporteur spécial Christof Heyns. Photo ONU - Jean-Marc Ferré

 

30 mai 2013 – un.org

 

Le Rapporteur spécial des Nations Unies sur les exécutions extrajudiciaires, sommaires ou arbitraires, Christof Heyns, a appelé jeudi à un moratoire sur le développement et l'utilisation des « robots létaux autonomes» (RLA), afin de permettre une réflexion internationale sur l'encadrement de ces machines dotées du pouvoir de tuer.

 

« Si les drones sont systématiquement téléguidés par des êtres humains, auxquels revient la décision d'employer la force létale, les RLA sont, quant à eux, équipés de systèmes informatiques qui leur permettent de choisir leur cible de manière autonome », a rappelé M. Heyns lors de la présentation de son dernier rapport au Conseil des droits de l'homme à Genève.

 

« Les RLA soulèvent des questions considérables sur la protection de la vie, par temps de guerre et de paix. S'ils devaient être introduits, ce serait alors des machines, et non plus les humains, qui décideraient qui doit mourir et qui reste en vie », a-t-il expliqué.

 

Selon M. Heyns, ces machines pourraient rendre plus facile l'entrée en guerre d'un État, tout en rendant problématique le respect du droit humanitaire international. Il paraît pour l'heure incertain, selon le Rapporteur spécial, que les RLA puissent être programmés de manière à faire la différence entre un combattant et un civil et à éviter les dommages collatéraux.

 

« Le déploiement des RLA pourrait rapidement devenir intolérable puisque aucun mécanisme de responsabilité pénale ne peut leur être appliqué», a indiqué l'expert indépendant de l'ONU.

 

Dans son rapport, M. Heyns demande aux États de mettre en place un moratoire sur la production, l'assemblage, le transfert, l'acquisition, le déploiement et l'utilisation des RLA, au moins jusqu'à l'établissement d'un cadre international sur l'utilisation de ces machines.

 

« Une guerre sans conscience conduit à des carnages mécanisés», a affirmé M. Heyns. « La privation de la vie mérite d'amples délibérations. La décision de permettre à des machines de tuer des hommes mérite d'être mûrement réfléchie au niveau mondial ».

 

« Les RLA purgent les décisions de leur composante humaine. Les États sont attirés par cette technologie parce que les êtres humains, en raison de leurs émotions, sont bien plus lents à décider que les robots», a-t-il conclu.

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28 mai 2013 2 28 /05 /mai /2013 16:35
Chinese Navy Shows UAV Operations at Sea

May 28, 2013 defense-aerospace.com

(Source: China Military Online; published May 27, 2013)

 

Minesweeper Flotilla In Comprehensive Maritime Offence and Defense Drill

 

A minesweeper flotilla under the East China Sea Fleet of the Navy of the Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) conducted a comprehensive maritime offence-and-defense drill in complex electromagnetic environment in early May.

 

During the drill, the officers and men of the flotilla have accomplished such subjects as mine-laying and mine-sweeping, electromagnetic countermeasure, live-ammunition firing and so on.

 

(EDITOR’S NOTE: The photographs posted with this brief news item show some pretty old-style UAVs being launched and being maintained. While this could be intended to imply such UAVs are operated from PLA Navy minesweepers, no photograph allows the mother ship to be identified as a minesweeper. The launch photo shows what appears to be the flame of a booster rocket, and no catapult is visible.)

Chinese Navy Shows UAV Operations at Sea
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28 mai 2013 2 28 /05 /mai /2013 11:35
Stemming night flight  (photo : Institute of Space Technology Vietnam)

Stemming night flight (photo : Institute of Space Technology Vietnam)


28 May 2013 Defense Studies

 

Night 25/5, two unmanned aircraft by the Institute of Space Technology (Academy of Science and Technology of Vietnam) manufacturing continued successful implementation of the program with a four-night flight flight towards the South China Sea 50km.

According to Dr. Pham Ngoc Lang - Chairman of topics made unmanned aircraft for scientific research, the aircraft was flying in fully automatic mode, in accordance with the original itinerary flight commander for approval.

During night flights, the aircraft is equipped with infrared cameras, camera mounted infrared lens for night service dedicated research programs.

 

AV.UAV.S2 night flying toward the East Sea (photo : Institute of Space Technology Vietnam)

This morning (26/5), six unmanned aircraft continue to perform 10 successful flight research collaboration between the Institute functions under Academy of Science and Technology of Vietnam.

Dr. Lang said the results of the test flight program serves "Highlands 3" in Da Lat and flight test results for marine scientific research (both day and night-flying) helped the group in Nha Trang Research Institute of Space Technology continues to improve the aircraft, preparing to take on mass production, marine air service operations in particular and economic development - society in general.
 

Aircraft not signify a person's driving Vietnam Fatherland flying in the sky  (photo : Institute of Space Technology Vietnam)

Earlier, on 25/5, six unmanned aircraft took off at the beach Van Ninh district, Khanh Hoa, 100km from the city of Nha Trang north start flying program for scientific research on the marine waters Central.

This is a scientific research program coordinated between Nha Trang Institute of Oceanography, Institute of Research and Technology Applications Nha Trang Institute of Space Technology.

Dr. Pham Ngoc Lang - Chairman of topics made unmanned aircraft for scientific research - said the plane had been "assigned task" very specific.
 

Aerial view of the scene at the easternmost point coordinates 12038'52'' N,'' E 109027'44

Accordingly, AV.UAV.S1 aircraft take flight itinerary recording, imaging spectrometry ecosystems, coastal fisheries, vegetation, coral areas, distributed component substrate Van Phong Bay , sea surface temperature, measured sediment deposition in estuarine / marine, mangrove forests, coastal erosion areas, standardized photographs from satellites ... for research programs.

AV.UAV.S2 aircraft take flight at sea cruise on 100km with recording task, imaging spectrometry aquatic species on the continental shelf, the seabed coral, temperature, salinity seawater , ocean currents and detect potential areas for fish farmers and fishermen to provide data for the Nha Trang Oceanography Institute and the Institute of Research and Technology Applications Nha Trang.

AV.UAV.S2 aircraft conducting aerial photography of the easternmost point (land) of the country located at 12038'52'' N,'' E 109027'44, administrative boundaries Dam, Van Thanh Van Ninh, Khanh Hoa on itinerary at sea shelf. The aircraft also carried flight AV.UAV.S2 recording, photography, spectrometry Trau island status, Black Buffalo and some other islands in the itinerary.

(Phunu Today)

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27 mai 2013 1 27 /05 /mai /2013 18:20
NATO’s Global Hawks Unaffected by EuroHawk

May 24, 2013 defense-aerospace.com

(Source: Deutsche Welle German radio; published May 24, 2013)

 

NATO Drone Project Set to Continue

 

Pulling the plug on Germany's Euro Hawk project won't have consequences for NATO's surveillance program using "Global Hawk" models. But critics argue a joint European drone project would have been better.

 

The canceled German Euro Hawk drone project will most likely not have consequences on a similar project by NATO. The alliance plans to use five drones of the Global Hawk Block 40 type for its "Alliance Ground Surveillance" (AGS) system.

 

According to NATO, plans will not be affected by the German decision. The Global Hawk drone built by US company Northrop Grumman is basically the version the system's based on - the Euro Hawk drone Germany ordered is a modified version of the Global Hawk 20 model, an earlier version of the Global Hawk 40 which NATO now plans to use.

 

Exact images from far away

 

At the May 2012 summit in Chicago, the allies had agreed on aquiring unarmed surveillance drones. They are scheduled to be used by 2017 and to be stationed in Sicily. Estimates put the cost for the five drones at around 1 billion euros ($1.3 billion).

 

Fourteen NATO states are involved: Bulgaria, Germany, Denmark, Estonia, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Norway, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, the Czech Republic and the US. The Global Hawk drone could fly as high as 20 kilometers (12 miles) and is able to take clear pictures of the ground even from such heights - precise enough to still spot individuals.

 

No European project?

 

The NATO project is going to continue despite the German decision to halt its program. But the situation in Germany has been met with criticism in Brussels. Michael Gahler, security spokesman of the conservative European People's Party (EPP) in the EU parliament, told DW that Germany should rather have pushed for a European solution than trying to go it alone.

 

After all, European countries were facing the same security threats, and every state had too little money to develop a system on its own.

 

"Such projects are very good examples of how such things can be done in a joint effort - especially when something new is being developed. I hope that everybody will learn from that mistake," he said.

 

Gahler believes a European project would have made more sense from an economic perspective as well.

 

"You can't see this simply as a military issue. Those drones are first and foremost not a means of fighting." In about 90 percent of the cases, they would "be used in a civilian manner for surveillance," for instance in agriculture or forestry in order to spot pollution or fires. With that many areas of use, "it really makes sense to bundle civilian and military resources."

 

Northrop Grumman dismisses criticism

 

The US company producing the drones has come forward to defend itself against German complaints. Berlin had criticized an allegedly missing feature to avoid collisions and lacking documentation needed for getting the drones approved for European airspace.

 

 

A Northrop Grumman spokesperson told German weekly "Die Zeit" that Germany had in fact never specified what kind of papers were needed for approval and that it was only a prototype that operated without collision protection. That feature would have been implemented in the four other drones Germany had ordered, the company said.

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27 mai 2013 1 27 /05 /mai /2013 12:20
U.S. Navy Moves Ahead With Small Tactical UAVs

May 25, 2013. David Pugliese - Defence Watch

 

From Naval Air Systems Command in the U.S.:

 

The Department of the Navy announced May 15 that the RQ-21A Small Tactical Unmanned Aircraft System (STUAS) received Milestone C approval authorizing the start of low rate initial production.

 

With MS C approval, the RQ-21A program, managed by the Navy and Marine Corps STUAS program office (PMA-263) here at NAS Patuxent River, enters the production and deployment phase of the acquisition timeline, according to the PMA-263 Program Manager Col. Jim Rector.

 

“This milestone allows us to provide our warfighter with a unique capability – an organic UAS capable of operations from both land and sea,” said Rector.  “The RQ-21A will provide persistent maritime and land-based tactical Reconnaissance, Surveillance, and Target Acquisition data collection and dissemination capabilities.”

 

The Navy awarded Insitu, Inc., an Engineering Manufacturing Development (EMD) contract for STUAS in July 2010.  Since then, the government/industry team has executed land-based developmental tests (DT), operational tests at China Lake, Calif. in December 2012 and conducted the first sea-based DT from USS Mesa Verde (LPD 19) in February.

 

Concurrently, Marines are flying an Early Operational Capability (EOC) system at Twenty Nine Palms, Calif. for pre-deployment preparation. Lessons learned from EOC will be applied to operational missions in theater.

 

The aircraft is based on Insitu’s Scan Eagle UAS, which has flown more than 245,000 hours in support of Navy and Marine Corps forward deployed forces via a services contract. The RQ-21A system has a 25 pound payload capacity, ground control system, catapult launcher and unique recovery system, known as Skyhook, allowing the aircraft to recover without a runway.

 

The RQ-21A includes Day/Night Full Motion Video (FMV) cameras, infrared marker and laser range finder, and Automatic Identification System (AIS) receivers.  The ability to rapidly integrate payloads allows warfighters to quickly insert the most advanced and relevant payload for their land/maritime missions and counter-warfare actions.

 

“The expeditionary nature of the RQ-21A makes it possible to deploy a multi-intelligence capable UAS with minimal footprint, ideal for amphibious operations such as a Marine Expeditionary Unit conducts,” Rector said. “The RQ-21A can be operated aboard ship, and then rapidly transported ashore as either a complete system or just a “spoke”, or control center, making this system ideally suited for humanitarian or combat operations, where getting real-time intelligence to the on-scene commander is crucial.”

 

The DoN plans to purchase a total of 36 STUAS systems, each with five aircraft.  Initial Operational Capability is scheduled for second quarter fiscal year 2014.

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