Scott Nicholas
Airbus‘ defense and space segment has developed and tested an unmanned aerial vehicle demonstrator as part of efforts to aid the development of future UAV technology.
The jet-propelled SAGITTA drone flew autonomously on a pre-programmed course for approximately seven minutes over a test site in South Africa, Airbus said Tuesday.
SAGITTA is powered by electromechanical actuators and its airframe is made from carbon fiber composite materials.
Airbus collaborated with Germany-based technical universities such as the University of the Federal Armed Forces, Ingolstadt University of Applied Sciences and the German Aerospace Center DLR on the SAGITTA project.
The project aims to help Airbus’ development partners test features for new unmanned flight technologies and support the operational maturity of next-generation platforms.
The company also offered industrial facilities to support the integration of technologies for the demonstrator at the Airbus Defense and Space Military Air Systems Center in Germany.
