OCCAR Signs Major Eurodrone Contract

(25 Feb 2022)  The Organisation for Joint Armament Co-operation (OCCAR) has signed the Eurodrone global contract, which includes the development and manufacturing of 20 systems and 5 years of initial in-service support.

Airbus Defence and Space GmbH signed the deal in representation of the three Major Sub-Contractors (MSC) Airbus Defence and Space S.A.U in Spain, Dassault Aviation in France and Leonardo S.p.A. in Italy, while OCCAR signed on behalf of the four launch nations: Germany, France, Italy and Spain.

“This signature kicks-off the development of one of the most ambitious European defence programmes,” said Mike Schoellhorn, CEO of Airbus Defence and Space. “Eurodrone is the result of collaborative work between the industry, OCCAR and the nations. It will deliver the most advance Unmanned Aerial System (UAS) in its segment, generate more than 7,000 high-tech jobs within the industry and will strengthen European industrial sovereignty, know-how and collaboration between nations.”

The MALE Eurodrone RPAS is designed for ISTAR and homeland security missions.

Eurodrone is a Medium Altitude Long Endurance (MALE) Remotely Piloted Aircraft System (RPAS) with versatile and adaptable capabilities designed for Intelligence, Surveillance Target Acquisition and Reconnaissance (ISTAR) missions or homeland security operations.

Its open architecture, part of the future-proof design, will allow for growth and rescoping system capabilities as may be required by the future needs of customer armed forces.

“This contract marks the determination of the European nations and industrial partners to achieve the political goals and to meet the technological challenges leading to European defense sovereignty,” said Eric Trappier, Chairman and CEO of Dassault Aviation. “Innovative programmes with strong key technological foundations will guarantee the strategic autonomy of Europe by offering new alternatives to the on-the-shelf acquisition of non-European products. Thanks to a shared vision and a pragmatic approach, Eurodrone is carried by the choice of best in-house competencies and expertise of each company.”

Eurodrone relies on Digital Design, Manufacturing and Services (DDMS), a new, digital-first approach applied by Airbus to the way aerospace products are designed, manufactured and operated throughout all product phases. Eurodrone is the first programme that will be fully designed and developed from the start through DDMS in a stepped approach and aims to benefit from better upgrade planning, improved operational availability and lower life-cycle costs.

“Eurodrone will provide high performance and sovereign operational systems to the armed forces and represents a key constituent of the European Defence Industry as well as a unique opportunity to showcase our high technological expertise and capabilities stemming from decades of European collaboration on military programmes,” said Lucio Valerio Cioffi, General Manager of Leonardo. “Eurodrone will contribute to sustaining key competencies and jobs within Europe, providing armed forces with top performance and independent operational systems for years to come.”