The French Navy will fly Schiebel S-100 uncrewed aerial systems (UAS) from its FREMM frigates after a new deal struck by its procurement arm.
The DGA announced it has signed an agreement to acquire five of the Schiebel UAS for the French Navy’s multi-mission frigates, via a contract with Naval Group, which will integrate the drones into its STEERIS command-and-control (C2) system used on the warships.
The DGA also recently announced a separate deal with Naval Group, this one involving Airbus Helicopters, for six VSR700 UAS. They, too, will be controlled via STEERIS.
As well as on board, both sets of drones can also be controlled via Naval Group’s STEERIS Command, a containerised C2 centre deployable at sea or on shore.
The Schiebel S-100 UAS have a flight time of about six hours and can carry payloads of up to 50kg. Delivery of the drones, which will carry a wide-angle optical sensor and a gyrostabilized optronic turret, is scheduled to start later this year.
As per a DGA press statement, the Schiebel-related deal concerns “the acquisition and integration on frigates of a light naval drone reconnaissance capability with Camcopter S-100 F drones…. [It] aims to acquire a lightweight vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL) drone capability, based on the Camcopter S-100F drone produced by Schiebel and already in service on the French amphibious helicopter carriers (PHA). The S-100 system extends the ships’ surveillance capabilities beyond the horizon.”
It added: “The contract stipulates the supply by Naval Group of five Camcopter S-100F aerial drone systems, as well as solutions for their physical and functional integration onto the French Navy’s multi-mission frigates.”
- You can read more details on the DGA website