The American stealth drone Kratos Valkyrie, a combat partner for the Eurofighter

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This Monday, Airbus Defence released a video showcasing the Kratos XQ-58 Valkyrie UCCA, stating the following: "Airbus is currently equipping two Uncrewed Collaborative Combat Aircraft (UCCA), which were acquired from US partner Kratos Defense & Security Solutions, Inc., with Airbus' sovereign European mission system, the Multiplatform Autonomous Reconfigurable and Secure (MARS) system."

Airbus Defence notes that "MARS also contains an AI-supported software brain called MindShare which not only replaces the missing pilot, but is also capable of coordinating entire mission groups by being distributed across many manned and uncrewed platforms." Airbus Defence has announced that it expects the UCCA Valkyrie to be operational by 2029, although its maiden flight with a sovereign European mission system is planned for later this year.

"Fully autonomous or commanded by a Eurofighter, the Valkyrie will be able to take on sensitive mission tasks that would pose too great a danger to the pilot," Airbus Defence stated. "The UCCA can service kinetic and non-kinetic mission sets in several roles. For the German customer, Airbus and Kratos are initially focusing on a specific role to deliver credible combat air power on time and on target."

The Kratos XQ-58 Valkyrie made its maiden flight on March 6, 2019, at the Yuma Proving Ground in Arizona. It was designed for the United States Air Force's (USAF) Low Cost Attritable Strike Demonstrator (LCASD) program. It is a stealth drone with a low radar signature. The U.S. Navy and Marine Corps also each acquired two XQ-58s for evaluation. This drone can perform attack, reconnaissance, and even air defense missions, and can be equipped with AIM-120 AMRAAM air-to-air missiles.

The Valkyrie is smaller than a manned fighter jet. It measures 9.1 meters long, has a wingspan of 8.2 meters, and twin tail fins. It is equipped with a Williams FJ33 turbofan engine with 8.9 kN of thrust and can take off from unprepared locations and even from ships using small rockets. Its range is over 5,000 kilometers, and it reaches a maximum speed of 1,048 km/h, with a cruising speed of 882 km/h. Its maximum takeoff weight is 2,722 kg. Its operational ceiling is 45,000 feet (14,000 meters). It can carry up to 270 kg of weapons in an internal bay and another 270 kg on two underwing hardpoints. It can withstand maneuvers of more than 6G.

Marco Gumbrecht, Director of Key Accounts for Germany at Airbus Defence and Space, commented on these drones: "By combining the Kratos Valkyrie with our MARS mission system, we are offering the German customer exactly what Germany and Europe urgently need in the current geopolitical situation: a proven flying uncrewed combat aircraft with a sovereign European mission system that does not have to be developed from scratch in a time-consuming and costly manner."

Steve Fendley, President of Kratos' Unmanned Systems Division, stated: "By taking the flight-proven and in-production Valkyrie and integrating the Airbus MARS mission system, the Airbus-missionised Valkyrie UCCA is a multi-mission, affordable system that can operate independently, in teams of UAS, or in Manned-Unmanned-Teaming operations. Along with the technical and production backing Airbus and Kratos bring, we are realising an optimal capability system that can be bought and deployed as ‘affordable mass’; the consistent discriminator identified in today’s peer to peer wargames."

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Main image: Airbus Defence. Photos: Kratos Defense.