BAE Taranis

BAE Taranis
Type:	Stealth caps - combat drone
Design country:	United Kingdom
Manufacturer:	BAE Systems
First flight:	August 10, 2013
Commissioning:	In the development

The BAE Systems Taranis is a technology demonstrator for a British UCAV . It is part of the Strategic Unmanned Air Vehicle (Experimental) (SUAV [E]) program, the aim of which is to develop an autonomous unmanned air vehicle with stealth properties . BAE Taranis also serves together with the Dassault Neuron as a technology carrier for the Future Combat Air System . Taranis is the Celtic god of the sky, weather and thunder.

development

The development of the Taranis UCAV is led by BAE Systems , but Rolls-Royce , General Electric , QinetiQ and the UK Department of Defense are also involved in the program . BAE Systems is responsible for the construction, the stealth technology and the flight control and testing. QinetiQ develops the artificial intelligence for autonomous flight and GE Aviation Systems contributes the avionics . The aircraft is powered by a Rolls-Royce Turbomeca Adour MK951 turbofan .

BAE Systems Australia has a 5% stake in the program. The Taranis demonstrator will have an MTOW of 8,000 kilograms and the dimensions of a BAE Hawk . The first parts were produced in September 2007, and assembly of the UCAV began in February 2008. On July 12, 2010, the finished Taranis demonstrator was presented to the public for the first time. Flight testing was originally scheduled to begin in 2011, but the first flight did not take place until August 2013. The flight tests took place on the Australian Woomera Test Range .