Sky Eye Systems Srl, a company of the OMA Foligno S.p.A. Group, in December 2022 signed the Contract for the supply of APR X-25 Systems to the Italian Army with the General Secretariat of Defense, National Directorate of Aeronautical Armaments and Airworthiness (DAAA). In detail, these are two systems, each equipped with three aircraft.
The Contract has a total value of nine million euros and also includes integrated logistical support services and theoretical and practical training for a period of two years plus one as an option.
The Rapier X-25 System has been designed using the most advanced aircraft design methods, in compliance with NATO STANAG 4703 standards.
The Rapier boasts top-in-class EO/IR sensors intended for Intelligence-Surveillance-Target Acquisition-Reconnaissance (ISTAR) missions and is the only UAV on the Mini class market below 25 Kg Maximum Take-off Weight (MTOW) to have obtained from the DAAA, on October 27, 2022, the Type Certificate (Airworthiness) without any limitation for the population density of third parties overflown.
In November and December 2022, test flights were carried out for the experimentation of the new Configuration of the Rapier X-VTOL which shares 70% of the technological solutions and components of the Rapier X-25, thus allowing a drastic reduction in the “Time to Market”, development costs and effort necessary to certify the new version of the aircraft.
The terrestrial version has gasoline endothermic propulsion and electric motors for the VTOL function equipped with high redundancies and resistance to lateral wind gusts. It is also equipped with an electric motor with a tractor propeller that allows you to double the rate of ascent and descent of the aircraft in special operations that require high performance, it is also allowed to fly in cruise with only the electric motor for approaches to the ground with low acoustic impact, this is particularly useful in hostile operating theaters.
The Light Marina version provides a hybrid propulsion: electric for vertical take-off and landing, and an endothermic engine with pushing propeller for horizontal flight, which uses JP5 fuels, to allow its use on ships and marine platforms. In this marine version, the bow thruster allows precision landing by reversing the direction of rotation. It has an operational range of 100 km and a range of 5 to 11 hours depending on the mission. It mounts on board EO/IR sensors and other optional payloads such as Hyperspectral sensors, Lidar, IFF, SIGINT and even SAR (Synthetic Aperture Radar), thanks to the extreme flexibility and modularity of the payload bay.
The Remotely Piloted Aircraft System (SAPR) RAPIER X-25 designed by the company SKY EYE SYSTEMS S.r.l. has been certified by the DAAA (Directorate of Aeronautical Armaments and Airworthiness), in accordance with the AER (EP) standard. P-2 Em. 1 of 08 May 2013. The result is of significant importance as it is the only military certification granted in Italy and Europe without limitations regarding the population density flown over for the MINI RPAS 25 kg class. In this respect, the Rapier is superior to products of the same class made in the USA.
The System, being in full compliance with the NATO STANAG 4703 standard, has obtained a Type Certification that allows it to operate without limitations thanks to design and architectural choices, such as having implemented triple dissimilar redundancies as well as Recovery procedures and return to a “safe” point downstream of the first failure an inertial platform or following a blockage of one of the control surfaces that does not affect the controllability of the aircraft.
The achievement of this goal was possible thanks to the close collaboration between the DAAA and the Company that allowed to optimize the design and construction choices according to strict criteria adopted for higher class machines.
The aircraft, fixed wing, has a wingspan of 3.65 m and maximum take-off weight of 25 kg, is equipped with a high-performance EO / IR sensor and will be used for ISTAR missions (Intelligence, Surveillance, Targeting and Reconnaisance), can be used for the training of pilots and operators of higher class aircraft (LIGHT and TACTICAL). In fact, the Rapier with its flight and sensor performance, the fifth generation GCS, with automatic and semi-automatic flight modes, would allow pilots and operators to achieve a high “training effectiveness”, before moving on to the operating machines with considerable savings in terms of time and costs. The system is equipped with a proprietary Flight Control System (FCS), whose SW has been developed and certified according to the RTCA Safety Critical DO178C DAL B guidelines. The Ground Control Station (GCS) of the Rapier X-25, also at level DAL B of the RTCA DO178C, consists of two stations, one for Command and Control (C2), the other for sensor management. The pneumatic launcher, optimized in weight and performance, allows a reliable take-off of the aircraft, even in non-ideal weather conditions (low / high temperature, humidity and / or wind).
The LOS communication system allows command and control and data/video transmission up to 90 km distance between aircraft and GCS (BVLOS, Beyond Visual Line Of Site).
The Rapier X-25, is already in force also at the Air Force, with which a contract has been stipulated for the supply of Integrated Logistic Support for the years 2022 and 2023, including training for pilots, sensor operators, maintenance technicians, spare materials, adherence support with company technicians, for a total of 600 flight hours, to carry out both scheduled (Technical Level 1, 2 and 3) and unscheduled maintenance operations.
The system is being evaluated by other Italian and foreign Armed Forces as well as by Civil Bodies such as VV.FF, Regions etc.
In the Italian industrial landscape, Sky Eye Systems, certified by the DAAA through the release of the MDOA (Military Design Organization Approval), holds aeronautical skills and high-level know-how for a complete domain of technologies aimed at the design, prototyping, production and logistic support of Certified Unmanned aircraft.
To guarantee Product Quality and Customer Satisfaction, all the enabling technologies to support the design and evolution of the systems produced, are dominated and developed internally in Sky Eye Systems through a highly qualified team of Technicians and Engineers. Article by Coccarde Tricolori
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