The European Eurodrone program has reached the preliminary design review stage and is preparing to move on to prototype production by the end of this year. This might seem like progress, were it not for the fact that the program began almost a decade ago, in 2016.
In order to pass the evaluation stage, Eurodrone will have to prove its compliance with more than two thousand requirements from participating countries. At the same time, the design phase must be completed by the end of the year.
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There are plans to create three prototypes, which will be tested in France, Spain, and Italy. A total of 60 serial drones are planned, with final assembly set for Germany.
The Eurodrone project, also known as MALE RPAS, is being developed by European giants Airbus, Leonardo, and Dassault. A major emphasis is placed on keeping the project free from U.S. regulations and permits.
The UAV will have two engines, a maximum take-off weight of 12 tons, as well as a payload of up to 2.3 tons. This is an alternative to the American RQ-4 Global Hawk.
The drone will be designed to perform a wide range of tasks. The tasks cover anti-submarine and anti-aircraft operations, early warning, wide-area surveillance, protection of fleets and infrastructure, and signal intelligence.
Regarding the development timeline, the program started in 2016, and research identifying needs and requirements wrapped up in 2018. However, this was followed by three more years of negotiations, which ended with the signing of a contract on February 24, 2022, for 20 Eurodrone systems, including 60 drones for 40 control stations.
The process has been delayed by protracted negotiations among the participating countries: Germany, Spain, Italy, and France. The challenges of working with the later on the FCAS fighter jet project are well known, and the pandemic has compounded these issues. However, even this explanation does not justify the enormous delays that put Western developments behind their competitors from China and russia.
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