UCAV nEUROn presented to EU Government representatives »

By Jean-Michel Guhl
21 January 2012

The first UCAV developed by the European industry, the nEUROn, pictured upon its roll-out at the Dassault factory in Saint-Cloud, France, on 19 January 2012. A GBU-12 Paveway laser-guided bomb can be seen hanging out of the weapon bay. This new unmanned combat drone will fly during 2012 out of Istres air base. © Dassault

Istres, France, 20 January 2012 — The nEUROn, European UCAV technology demonstrator, has been officially presented to the representatives of the six participating countries by Mr. Charles Edelstenne, Chairman & CEO of Dassault Aviation. Mr. Serge Dassault, Honorary Chairman of the company, as well as the representatives of the nEUROn industrial team — Saab (Sweden), Alenia Aermacchi (Italy), EADS-CASA (Spain), HAI (Greece) and RUAG (Switzerland) — attended this ceremony.

This presentation is a major milestone after five years of design, development, production, assembly and the first static tests of the nEUROn demonstrator. The first engine tests will be performed very soon, aiming at a first flight mid-2012. Afterwards, a complete sequence of test flights will take place during two years in France, Sweden and Italy. These tests will address flight qualities, stealthiness, air-to-ground weapon firing from an internal bay, integration into a C4I environment as well as the insertion of uninhabited platform in airspace.

The National Armament Directors - or their representatives - of the six participating countries (France, Sweden, Italy, Spain, Greece and Switzerland) have been able to see for the first time this demonstrator that represents a triple "first" for the aerospace industries of European countries: first stealth combat aircraft, first UCAV developed in co-operation and first combat aircraft entirely designed and developed on a 3D virtual plateau.

Launched at the initiative of the French Ministry of Defense in 2003, the nEUROn programme has two aims: one, to develop the technologies critical to tomorrow's combat aircraft; two, to validate an innovative co-operation model, that optimizes the respective know-hows of the participating industries under the leadership of a single recognized and accepted main contractor.

The nEUROn programme, originated by the French MoD and supported by Italy, Sweden, Spain, Greece and Switzerland represents a very important effort in maturing new technologies and setting the base for future military programmes (manned and unmanned). This initiative envisions the manufacturing of the first full-scale technological demonstrator of a Combat Unmanned Aerial Vehicle flying in Europe by 2012.

The demonstration is an important step in technologies maturation process, providing confidence in technologies, by decreasing the level of risk, towards a system development for operational uses. The nEUROn is dedicated to the demonstration of key combat technologies, with fallout both on manned and unmanned future complex systems. It comprises the design, development, manufacturing and flight testing of a pilotless combat aircraft, capable of autonomous flight and weapon delivery in low observable condition. Although not a prototype, nEUROn is well representative of future combat UAV.

• The demonstration goals are:
  • Performing an Air to Ground mission, inserted in a Network Centric Warfare;
  

  		Civil and military actors of the joint European nEUROn UCAV programme pose in front of the new attach drone around Serge Dassault and Charles Edelstenne, CEO of the Dassault Aviation company on 19 January 2012. © Dassault

  • Designing a stealth platform (low Radar cross section and Infrared);
  • Weapon delivery from an internal bay with stringent time constraint;
  • To perform an autonomous target detection and recognition demo.

From the industrial point of view nEUROn is led by the French Dassault Aviation and Alenia Aermacchi is the first industrial partner, with 22% share of the programme with responsibilities at system and sub-system level. Alenia Aermacchi leads an Italian companies' pool, including SELEX Galileo. Its contribution will concern design and production of the generation and electrical distribution system, of the air data system (sensors for flight parameters and algorithm), low observable components and, above all, of the integrated weapon system with full autonomous management of the subsystems, the so-called Smart Integrated Weapon Bay (SIWB). Such system will allow the detection, the recognition and illumination of the target and the sending of the approval request to the ground station commander and finally the launching of any kind of weapon, all of this with stealth material and modalities.

Alenia Aermacchi concluded successfully Low Observability tests on proof of principle to verify stealth technologies specifically developed for the nEUROn demonstrator and have started with manufacturing activities nEUROn’s demo capabilities will be demonstrated in flight with tests that will be carried out in Italy, as well as in France and in Sweden.The nEUROn programme, launched in 2006, has just concluded the development phase. The current year will mainly be dedicated to parts' production and integration, and after that the ground tests will start. The flight tests will begin in 2012 and will go on until 2013.

Source: Dassault Aviation

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