PARIS – In what many are calling a vital shift in Italy’s mentality on arming unmanned aircraft systems, Leonardo showcased for the primary time its Falco Xplorer drone fitted with an MBDA Brimstone missile on the Paris Air Show.
Italian defense company Leonardo has been within the business of manufacturing UAS for twenty years, and today some sixty units of its Falco drones are in use worldwide. The corporate has up to now advertised its systems primarily for civilian operations in addition to intelligence and surveillance-based missions. This has partially reflected an inclination that has existed within the broader Italian defense culture over time, which could somewhat be regarded as a resistance and even taboo towards arming these kinds of systems.
This may very well be changing as Leonardo displayed its light medium-altitude long endurance, or MALE, drone, the Falco Xplorer, mounted with MBDA’s lightweight Brimstone missile on the Paris Air Show, occurring this week. Although just one was visible, an organization representative told Defense News that it may very well be fitted with a complete of 4 missiles.
“MBDA and Leonardo are cooperating together on integrating Brimstone on the Falco Xplorer and are also currently doing joint integration studies and demonstrations,” the representative said.
The ambition is to have this variant available in the marketplace for purchasers by 2025. It was not developed in response to a requirement issued specifically by the Italian Air Force, reasonably responding to a requirement by other customers, they said.
The FALCO Xplorer has a maximum payload of 350 kilograms (772 lbs) and has an endurance of 24 hours.
Concerning potential sales, it’s more likely to peak the interest of existing Brimstone operators. Beyond the U.K., the missiles have up to now been sold to Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Germany and most recently Ukraine to be used as a surface-launched ground attack system. The Spanish Air Force also chosen the weapon earlier this yr to equip its fleet of Eurofighters.
Elisabeth Gosselin-Malo is a Europe correspondent for Defense News. She covers a big selection of topics related to military procurement and international security, and makes a speciality of reporting on the aviation sector. She relies in Milan, Italy.