SIMCLAIRS: A European Lightweight UAV Radar Tech

Thales I-Master(click to view full) As UAVs begin to take on a wider array of battlefield roles, the ability to carry radars for situational awareness, detection, and targeting will become more and more important. Radars are also important to UAVs’ current functions as long-endurance ground surveillance platforms, however, offering an option that can supplement visual and thermal optics in order to penetrate foliage, and scan over a wider field of view. Many medium and large size tactical UAVs carry them now, from the General Atomics AN/APY-8 Lynx that can equips the MQ-1/9 Predator family, to the 65 pound Thales I-Master that equips Britain’s Hermes Mk450B Watchkeeper UAVs, to the tiny 2-pound NanoSAR radar that Boeing has tested on its small ScanEagle UAV. France DGA recently announced a tri-national SIMCLAIRS program (Studies for Integrated Multifunction Compact Lightweight Airborne Radars & Systems) research program aimed at keeping European industry competitive in this area… Contracts and Key Events NanoSAR on ScanEagle(click to view full) SIMCLAIRS is a tri-national project involving France, Britain, and Sweden. The industry consortium consists of Saab AB (Sweden), Finmeccanica’s SELEX Sensors & Airborne Systems Ltd (UK), Thales UK Ltd., and Thales Systemes Aeroportes (France). The goal is to develop […]