Airbus-Dassault-Leonardo EuroMALE (Eurodrone)

History of Airbus-Dassault-Leonardo EuroMALE (Eurodrone)

EuroMALE is a new European project aiming to boost the continent's military drone capabilities. Led by Airbus, Dassault, and Leonardo, it aims to develop locally-made unmanned aerial systems for European armed forces, reducing reliance on US and Israeli drones. The design showcased at ILA Berlin in 2018 features a streamlined body with avionics up front and a unique tail arrangement. Powered by turboprop engines, it's designed to meet civil airspace regulations. With limited details on performance, it's expected to prioritize endurance over speed. Similar to the Predator series, it will focus on intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance missions, lacking ground-attack capabilities. A finalized version is expected around 2025, with specifics still under wraps.

Specification

Basics

Year of Service: 2027

Origins: France

Status: Program is running.

Crew: 0

Manufacturer: Airbus; Dassault Aviation - France / Leonardo - Italy

Carrier: France (probably);Germany; (probably);Italy (probably);Spain (probably)

Roles

Ground attack (bombing, strafing): The ability to conduct air strikes against ground targets using (but not limited to) artillery, bombs, rockets, rockets, etc.

Intelligence Surveillance Reconnaissance (ISR), reconnaissance: Monitor ground targets/target areas to assess surrounding threat levels, enemy strength, or enemy movement.

X-Plane (development, prototyping, tech demos): Aircraft designed for prototyping, technology demonstration, or research/data collection.

Unmanned: Aircraft designed (or later developed) have inherent unmanned capabilities and can fill a variety of battlefield roles.

Dimensions and Weight

Length: 32.8 feet (10.00 m)

Width/span: 49.2 feet (15.00 m)

Height: 8.2 feet (2.50 m)

Cured weight: 1,213 lbs (550 kg)

MTOW: 2,425 lbs (1,100 kg)

MAINPLANE STRUCTURE

Monoplane: Designed to use a single main wing main aircraft; this is the most popular arrangement of main aircraft.

Install low: The main aircraft is mounted low on the side of the fuselage.

Straight: Floor plans involve the use of simple, straight main plan elements.

Performance

Installed: 2 x conventional engines driving a six-bladed propeller unit in a thrust (stern) arrangement.

Maximum speed: 140 km/h (225 km/h | 121 knots)

Maximum: 24,606 feet (7,500 m | 5 km)

Area: 466 km (750 km | 1,389 nautical miles)

ARMOR

Mission equipment focused on a variety of optics and sensors suitable for intelligence-surveillance-reconnaissance (ISR) roles. Future versions could support air-to-surface missiles as well as precision/laser-guided bombs.