BAE, Lockheed Martin plan large jammer drone as door opener in combat

LONDON — BAE Systems and Lockheed Martin are teaming up to develop a family of uncrewed autonomous air systems, with an initial focus on electronic warfare, the companies said at the DSEI UK defense show here on Tuesday.

Details remained scant as the companies announced their collaboration. The system will be in the 1-tonne range and able to carry different payloads, according to Dave Holmes, the managing director of BAE Systems’ FalconWorks division.

The goal is a cost-effective vehicle that’s easy to modify as well as easy to deploy, be that air dropped or launched from ground or maritime platforms, said OJ Sanchez, the general manager of Lockheed Martin Skunk Works.

The design will include “modularity and adaptability,” according to the partners, who cited a need to quickly develop and field affordable combat mass.

Drone and missile makers are increasingly touting systems that can be tinkered with to keep them relevant, as well as cheaper and faster to produce.

Pan-European missile maker MBDA presented a one-way effector with 800 kilometer range at the show on Tuesday that can be built using different off-the-shelf components and armed with various warhead types.

BAE and Lockheed Martin will disclose specific applications for the system as those are being developed, with cost “an important variable” for the design team, Sanchez said.

The system is not considered a missile and will be designed to return, while still being of “an attritable nature,” according to Holmes. The return mechanism would be something other than landing gear, possibly a parachute, the executive said.

The past three years have demonstrated a need for armed forces to have a capability to “punch a hole through these very complex and denied electronic warfare environments,” Holmes said. The uncrewed air systems will have capabilities that can be deployed from day one of a conflict, he said.

The concept is for an open system approach that allows to integrate users’ capabilities, while having modular architecture both in terms of firmware and software will be key to refreshing the system and keeping it current, he said.

BAE Systems sees the collaboration with Lockheed Martin as “highly complementary” to what MBDA can offer, according to Holmes. The British company is a major shareholder in MBDA, with a 37.5% stake, together with Airbus and Leonardo.

Rudy Ruitenberg is a Europe correspondent for Defense News. He started his career at Bloomberg News and has experience reporting on technology, commodity markets and politics.

伦敦——英国航空航天系统公司（BAE Systems）和洛克希德·马丁公司周二在伦敦举行的英国防务展（DSEI UK）上宣布，两家公司将合作开发一系列无人自主空中系统，初期重点是电子战。

两家公司宣布合作之际，细节仍不多。据英国航空航天系统公司（BAE Systems）旗下猎鹰工程部门（FalconWorks）总经理戴夫·霍姆斯（Dave Holmes）称，该系统重量约为1吨，能够携带不同的有效载荷。

洛克希德·马丁臭鼬工厂总经理 OJ Sanchez 表示，目标是制造一种经济高效、易于改装且易于部署的车辆，无论是空投还是从地面或海上平台发射。

合作伙伴表示，该设计将包含“模块化和适应性”，他们指出需要快速开发和部署价格合理的作战大规模武器。

无人机和导弹制造商越来越多地推销那些可以进行微调以保持其相关性、且生产成本更低、速度更快的系统。

泛欧导弹制造商 MBDA 周二在展会上展示了一款射程为 800 公里的单向效应器，该效应器可以使用不同的现成组件制造，并配备各种类型的弹头。

桑切斯表示，随着系统具体应用的开发，BAE 和洛克希德·马丁公司将公布这些应用的具体细节，而成本是设计团队考虑的“一个重要因素”。

据霍姆斯称，该系统不被视为导弹，其设计目的是返回，但仍具有“消耗性”。这位高管表示，返回机制将并非起落架，而可能采用降落伞。

霍姆斯表示，过去三年已经证明，武装部队需要具备“突破这些极其复杂且难以防御的电子战环境”的能力。他还说，无人空中系统将具备在冲突爆发第一天即可部署的能力。

他表示，该理念是采用开放系统方法，允许集成用户的功能，同时在固件和软件方面采用模块化架构，这将是更新系统并使其保持最新状态的关键。

据霍姆斯称，BAE系统公司认为与洛克希德·马丁公司的合作与MBDA公司所能提供的服务“高度互补”。这家英国公司是MBDA公司的主要股东，持有37.5%的股份，其他主要股东包括空客和莱昂纳多。

鲁迪·鲁伊滕贝格是《防务新闻》的欧洲记者。他的职业生涯始于彭博新闻社，拥有报道科技、大宗商品市场和政治方面的经验。