BAE Systems Australia Strix UCAV and Razer Munition

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New BAE Australia UCAV, the Strix. VTOL 'convertiplane'. An interesting concept. New 50kg class munition Razer mounted onboard, with Sea Venom and Enforcer alongside.

SfMEM44.jpg



BAE also seems to be looking to position itself as a sovereign munitions capability in Australia given the recent Government plans for a complex weapons capability there.

https://twitter.com/x/status/1630374598112956417
View: https://twitter.com/BAESystemsAus/status/1630374598112956417

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TqzJBLpbxic


STRIX

BAE Systems Australia has teamed with local industry to present Australia’s first domestically designed, manufactured and armed VTOL (vertical take-off and landing) uncrewed air system (UAS).
www.baesystems.com www.baesystems.com

RAZER: A low cost <br /> precision guided munition

BAE Systems Australia has announced the design and development of a new sovereign munition concept - to be known as RAZER - positioning the company as a future supplier of low-cost precision guided munitions to Australian and potential export customers.
www.baesystems.com www.baesystems.com
 
Curious what they mean by a "40-50kg standard non guided munition." Aerial bombs haven't been that small since WW2. The only modern munition I can think of in that weight class is a 155mm howitzer shell.
 
Hmm... What's the advantage over a typical lift+cruise hybrid quad?
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TomS said:
Curious what they mean by a "40-50kg standard non guided munition." Aerial bombs haven't been that small since WW2. The only modern munition I can think of in that weight class is a 155mm howitzer shell.
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NG's hatchet is like 6 lbs. The weight is usually overkill with modern seekers, unless you're hitting an unusual mass of enemies or a fortification.
 
Avimimus said:
Lighter weight and more power in cruise?
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Don't think so. STRIX looks structurally inefficient and all VTOL-aircraft do actually have a lot of excess power anyways (which is not needed in cruise).
Btw, the blade tips of the front rotors are too close to the ground for my taste (3rd pic)...
 

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STRIX

BAE Systems Australia has teamed with local industry to present Australia’s first domestically designed, manufactured and armed VTOL (vertical take-off and landing) uncrewed air system (UAS).
www.baesystems.com www.baesystems.com
 
defencesa.com

BAE Systems unveils Australian-first technology at Avalon – Defence SA

BAE Systems Australia has unveiled Australia’s first domestically designed, manufactured and armed VTOL (Vertical Take-Off and Landing) Uncrewed Air System (UAS) on the first day of the 2023 Avalon Airshow. STRIX™ is a hybrid, tandem wing, multi-domain and multi-role UAS capability that could be...
defencesa.com defencesa.com
 
So it's sort of like TB2 or Predator that trades 3-4x the range/persistence and some speed for VTOL capability? The specs don't look dissimilar to Fire Scout...

I'm struggling to see that this is a good trade for likely Australian usage
 
Avimimus said:
Lighter weight and more power in cruise?
Click to expand...
Easier to arm safely as well...it's also electric motors, but has a generator onboard. Not clear what type it is, if its a turbine, petrol or heavy fuel based engine, but that should give it a lot more range as well. Some of the marketing blurb gives a range of 800km with 2 of the Razer munitions onboard. Which is pretty good.
 
For me the ASW part of the mission is the key bit...

And the real killer app is dipping sonar...used in a Manned-Unmanned Team, a Merlin and a pair of Strix with the dipping sonar is a sub drivers nightmare...massively reduced expenditure in precious sonarbuoys as well...

Unlike the far more complex TERN this could see the light of day....a couple of these in their 20ft ISO's in the mission bay on a T26 alongside Merlin HM.2 and a few Malloy T650 and you've got all the bases covered.

View: https://youtu.be/-86lYBY6sB8?t=229
 
I really want to see them dipping a sonar that way with a 30kts winds or land on a ship. Good Luck!

After 2 decades of counter-terrorism oriented experts ruling over defense debates , now rejoice on the Fair weather Navy.

It's sad as I was thinking their original config was all about STOL (rolling). In front of wind, they also probably won't have to raise the nose at the vertical. A bit of pitch should ensure a near zero ground speed, only to be morated against gusts.
 
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For the ASW mission in a seaway then the conventional helicopter wins out e.g. as per the UK PROTEUS. Lots of hover performance and resistance to gusts, stability on deck etc.

I really doubt we'll see frigates with their own mini airgroups. Even the big ones are really constrained on space.
 
I agree, the kind of weather and deck handling constraints that a Navy would want would rule out anything too novel - the helicopter UAV would seem to be the better choice.
The UUV might also become a competitor in this sphere in the future as a standoff sonar platform.
 
What I don't get is the emphasis on vertical take-off. That design requirements appears everywhere now - but with very little justification.
 
DrRansom said:
What I don't get is the emphasis on vertical take-off. That design requirements appears everywhere now - but with very little justification.
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Usually operational requirements are analyzed and then summarized in a concept of operations.
In general VTOL capability becomes a requirement when the departure and/or landing zone makes it impossible to use a CTOL aircraft.
Typically helicopters are used for that.
However, helicopters are limited in speed and range. Fixed wing aircraft with VTOL capability may be superior if the majority of the mission is spent in cruise flight and sustained hovering is not a top requirement.
In any case, VTOL capability doesn't come for free.
 
I get the flexibility of VTOL over CTOL, but there is an intermediate level STOL which seems like it would work with any modern country that possesses an extensive road network.

Which leads to the confusion, the designs go straight to the hardest problem rather than see if some intermediate solution could meet operational requirements.
 
Actually there are quite a few STOL aircraft out there. Pilatus Porter and Short Skyvan come to my mind.
 
DrRansom said:
I get the flexibility of VTOL over CTOL, but there is an intermediate level STOL which seems like it would work with any modern country that possesses an extensive road network.
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Because its main duty will be carrying weapons and VTOL allows for flexible FARP. Otherwise, one of the main higher end competitors would probably be the Mojave.
 
So far thats the Razer munition, Brimstone, Sea Venom, Enforcer, Akeron LP and a FLWT that have been seen mounted/alongside the Strix.

Add in EO/IR turret as standard, sonobuoy dispenser and dipping sonar payloads (which appeared to be an active sonobuoy on a winch, sensible stuff...). Suspect we'll see cargo pods and radar (something like iMaster) in due course.

I'm convinced...lets buy some.
 
It's very easy to put plastic weapons alongside a plastic aircraft but in reality that suggests many hundreds of millions £ of weapon integration costs alone, before you realise that you need to pay for the aircraft development too.

This isn't buying something that exists off the shelf
 
Said they made some aerodynamic changes based on the digital prototype compared to the previous renders/mockup that would be incorporated into the flying prototype.
 
TomS said:
Curious what they mean by a "40-50kg standard non guided munition." Aerial bombs haven't been that small since WW2. The only modern munition I can think of in that weight class is a 155mm howitzer shell.
Click to expand...

Australia has a domestic 155mm artillery shell production line, I believe they are looking at 155mm shells with glide kits as a cheap sovereign production bomb.
 
Got to say I think it would make an awful lot of sense for T26..proper ASW with dipping sonar, ASuW (because Merlin can't do it...) and support to forces ashore...
 
TomS said:
Surely they could fit Sea Venom on the Merlin easily enough.
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It would probably be a not straightforward integration, but would be doable...but there is zero desire to.

They could fit rocket pods and forward firing MG's as well, they've even been trialled with live rounds fired using Forges De Zeebrugge pods some years ago but the RN has shown little interest. Some APKWS would be a useful, multi-purpose, cheap and easily integrated capability to have but no desire at all....even though the AAC are getting it for Apache.
 
timmymagic said:
It would probably be a not straightforward integration, but would be doable...but there is zero desire to.
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Weird. I'd have thought it would be straightforward. Physically, at least, it could just replace the torpedoes. But I do see that Sea Venom is proving to be a challenge to integrate even with Wildcat. so maybe it's a targeting data problem?

It seems like Martlet would be a better choice than APKWS, for commonality's sake, but it would definitely take more work to clear.
 

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