The French Defense Procurement Agency (DGA) on September 1, 2022 has officially qualified the Aliaca fixed-wing drone systems for the French Navy and received three initial systems for use aboard the Navy’s patrol vessels and surveillance frigates.
The fixed-wing UAS are built by Survey Copter, an Airbus subsidiary. The company signed a contract in 2020 worth €19.7 million (U.S. $19.73 million) with the French sea service for 11 systems – totaling 22 aircraft – in its maritime variant, dubbed SMDM for “Systèmes de Mini Drones aériens embarqués de la Marine.” The contract includes training and maintenance services.
The French military procurement office Direction Générale de l’Armement (DGA) certified the SMDM package on July 28, and the three first systems were subsequently delivered, the ministry announced Sept. 1. The certification followed multiple at-sea trials, run by the DGA, that allowed the navy and industry partners to test the system in multiple operational scenarios, the ministry said in a press release.
Each SMDM system comprises two Aliaca drones, weighing 16 kg (35 pounds) each, that are catapult-launched and can operate autonomously for three hours in a 50 kilometer (27 mile) range, per Survey Copter. Its electro optical/infrared (EO/IR) payload makes it suitable for missions at any time of day, as well as during severe weather conditions.
“These capabilities will allow the SMDM to investigate far-away zones, to identify structures at greater distances than radar ranges, and to characterize the threat in a real-time video feed,”
the French Ministry of Defense said in the release. The drones will be capable of identifying unknown vessels, discreetly detecting vessels of interest, or help in the search for shipwrecked individuals.
The Aliaca maritime UAS is a high endurance versatile system allowing up to 3 hours missions over a 50 km (27 Nm) range, perfectly adapted to maritime missions with high gyro stabilized EO/IR payload performances and qualified to operate in severe environmental conditions.
Launched by catapult, the Aliaca maritime UAS concludes its flight by landing automatically using a dedicated net landing solution. With a length of 2,2m and a wingspan of 3,6m for a maximum take-off weight of 16 kg, the Aliaca maritime UAS benefits from a powerful yet silent electric motor. The system can be deployed easily and rapidly in less than 15 minutes by 2 operators only.
Similarly, the “user-friendly” ground control station enables the operator to constantly monitor the automatic flight of the UAS while receiving in real-time day and night images and AIS (Automatic Identification System) data gathered by its onboard sensors.
It is designed to conduct several types of missions around the ships, including increasing the understanding of the tactical situation, control of illegal operations at sea, search-and-rescue, traffic monitoring, pollution detection, tracking of any suspicious behaviour in the ship environment and coastal surveillance.
This light on-board aerial solution gives the opportunity to vessels, traditionally not equipped with aerial assets, to enhance their tactical ISR capabilities, support decision making and reactivity in operations.
The Aliaca maritime UAS can easily be integrated on board any ships, with or without helicopter landing-deck, and its small logistic footprint enables operations and storage on board smaller sized ships. Its integration does not require heavy on-board modification nor storage of specific fuel.
The Direction générale de l’armement, is the French Government Defence procurement and technology agency responsible for project management, development, and purchase of weapon systems for the French military. The DGA’s mission is to prepare the future of French defense systems, equip the French armed forces and promote French defense industry exports.
Photo: Aliaca fixed-wing drone systems on a French Navy’s warship (DGA)
Source: Navy Recognition; Defense News