Air Force: 2 contracts for the acquisition of armed drones in less than 72 hours
France will have a fleet of 18 machines in March 2024 ...
2 contracts in 72 hours
Between June 28 and July 1, Paris acquired two additional MQ-9B Reaper systems (6 drones) according to the FMS procedure in two steps for a total of $ 158.84 million. From March 29, 2024, France will therefore have 18 armed Reaper (against 275 for the United States). A capacity that has long been the subject of debate under the presidency of François Hollande. IRIS was also mandated to conduct a discreet survey of the main French opinion leaders. The vast majority of these would not have opposed the use of armed drones, but on the condition that French nationals, even jihadists, are not targeted.
18 Reaper in 2024
In 2019, the AAE launched the modernization of its 6 Reaper Block 1 to the Block 5 standard, as well as their armament with GBU-12 laser-guided bombs and Hellfire missiles. The Block 5 offers a bus which was supposed to make it possible to "francize" the Reaper. A perspective which had unblocked at the time industrialists' opposition to this non-European acquisition. But very quickly the SIGINT pod project developed by Thales DMS, already very involved in the ISR Vador aircraft program, had to bow to the operational emergency. As a consequence, the acquisition in FMS of an American solution available off the shelf and carried out in less than 8 months by L3Harris and GA-ASI. This pod located under the wings to perform electronic interceptions, but also to geolocate the sources of emission.
Indispensable in the Sahel
Arrived in Niamey in 2014, the Reaper replaced the Harfang by providing greater autonomy for ISR missions, an acquisition cost inaccessible to European manufacturers, and greater reliability than the Israeli Herons. and an ability to be armed. From then on, in complementarity with the COS commandos and the Mirage 2000D, it proved to be essential for recon and long-range targeting (up to more than 1850 km) of armed terrorist groups (GAT). The Airbus Harfang before its withdrawal, enabled it to ensure the protection missions of troops deployed on the ground. In the long term, the Reaper will be replaced by the Eurodrone which promises, thanks to its carrying capacities, to be able to carry ISR sensors with performances similar to those fitted to reconnaissance satellites.
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