Sbastien Lecornu, the French Minister for the Armed Forces has signed a framework arrangement with Bruno Even, CEO of Airbus Helicopters and Marie-Laure Bourgeois, Executive Vice President Sales & & Marketing of Naval Group for the future acquisition of the Systmes de Drone Arien pour la Marine (SDAM: unmanned aerial systems for the Navy).
The arrangement also paves the way for cooperation with other nations via government to federal government agreements.Each SDAM will feature an Airbus VSR700 uncrewed aerial system (UAS), operated with Naval Groups Steeris Mission System.
Naval Group is also responsible for incorporating the SDAMs onto French Navy frigates.
As a result of 15 years of R&D experimentation and advancement, Steeris MS is a sea shown service developed for naval fight system integration.This framework arrangement is a key turning point for the VSR700 program, said Bruno Even, CEO of Airbus Helicopters.
With our partners we have actually demonstrated the VSR700s capabilities at sea with several demonstrations including one on board a French Navy frigate, he included.
With this programme we are developing a regional and sovereign UAS ecosystem that will benefit both our home nations and our partners throughout the globe, he described.
VSR700 is a really versatile system that could be used in many different environments as evidenced by the armed scout version on display screen at the Paris Air Show.This signature is a testimony to the teamwork accomplished with our partners and to Naval Groups knowledge in integrating all kinds of drones on board surface area ships to enhance the operational abilities of our customer naviessaid Pierre Eric Pommellet, Chairman and CEO of Naval Group.The structure agreement lays the groundwork for inclusion of further partner nations into the program.
Other countries across the world have been formally welcomed by the French Armament General Directorate (DGA) to sign up with the programme.
Through a federal government to government agreement they will have the ability to buy the system in a setup comparable to the one chosen by the DGA for the French Navy.The serial VSR700s that will be provided to the French Navy will be geared up for security and intelligence missions, like the VSR700 prototypes that have been evaluated so far to establish the SDAM.
This configuration consists of a radar, an electro-optical system and an Automatic Identification System (AIS) receiver.
The VSR700 has been developed to both remove and land immediately from a navy vessel in rough sea conditions, in a thick electromagnetic environment while carrying three sensing units and flying for more than 8 hours.Source: Airbus