ADA IUSAV (Aura UCAV)

[Matej]

I am a bit surprised that we do not have a topic about Indian UCAV yet, but here it is. India is semi-secretly developing an UCAV demonstrator, initially called AURA (Autonomous Unmanned Research Aircraft), now renamed to IUSAV (Indian Unmanned Strike Air Vehicle). Its clearly a nEUROn clone, developed with the help from Europe (from Dassault or SAAB or BAE Systems).

http://livefist.blogspot.sk/2012/06/exclusive-first-official-impressions-of.html
http://headlinestoday.intoday.in/headlines_today/programme/india-developing-unmanned-stealth-bomber-iusav/1/202017.html

 

[Reaper]

Good point Matej!

Looks like Neuron or X-45C.

But:

Important to note that Dassault Aviation, which leads the nEUROn programme, and Saab -- in charge of overall design -- have both offered to assist DRDO in their unmanned programmes (BAE Systems has separately offered to assist too)

Have offered to assist, but not developed the IUSAV!?

My question is: It is officially not allowed to sell UAV/UCAVs to India, because they violate some agreement!? Is it then allowed to support them in building their own?

 

[Matej]

No, the primary reason is that India a few years ago as a first country in the world issued a tender for stealthy autonomous UCAS. US companies did not respond because of the required transfer of potentially sensitive technologies and European firms answered in the way, that some systems are in development, but none of them is anywhere near operational deployment. But European companies also offered assistance in developing advanced domestic technology demonstrator named AURA. In the last weeks it seems, that India is preferring something like Taranis - UCAV that can be transferred into production system much easily than pure technology demonstrator (like nEUROn), so the name adequately changed to IUSAV.

 

[antigravite]

Adding water to the mill salted by a question mark: wikipedia's related project page...




http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DRDO_AURA


The "artist" impression of the AURA-1 UCAV project has a canopy which does not line up well with the concept of unmannedness


A.

 

[Sundog]

Who said that is a canopy? Is there any evidence? As it looks like an intake to me.

If it is a canopy, then it's probably there for flight test purposes. Develop the airframe into a flyable aircraft first. Then develop the unmanned control systems and have a pilot ride shotgun, jic anything fails. Then, on production models, build it without the flight test cockpit. I believe Scaled Composites did that with one of their designs.

 

[antigravite]

Ok for the intake, not a canopy. My glitch. Apologies.


A.