Aircraft
Europe Reaches a Crossroad in Male UAV Development
This model of an armed Mantis Male UAV was on show in the BAE Systems pavilion at the recent Farnborough airshow. (Photo: Chris Pocock)
This model of an armed Mantis Male UAV was on show in the BAE Systems pavilion at the recent Farnborough airshow. (Photo: Chris Pocock)

European governments have reached a crossroad in the potential development of next-generation unmanned aerial systems that could challenge current Israeli and U.S. leadership in this field. The British and French defense ministers will meet in London on Tuesday, July 24, to assess the Anglo-French Defence Agreement. They had been expected to award contracts to BAE Systems and Dassault for the bilateral pre-development of an unmanned Future Combat Air System (FCAS) and a medium-altitude long-endurance (Male) UAV named Telemos and based on BAE Systems’ Mantis.