Schiebel’s Camcopter S-300 has been selected as the airborne platform for SWORD, a European Defence Fund (EDF) project focused on Stand-off anti-submarine Warfare Operations by Remote Deployment (SWORD), a consortium led by TKMS Atlas Elektronik.
SWORD aims to develop a System-of-Systems for stand-off Anti-Submarine Warfare (ASW), providing an integrated sensor-to-shooter functional chain that enables naval platforms to detect, track, classify and neutralise submerged threats.
The 36-month project brings together European defence and technology partners to advance a mature concept design for future ASW capabilities.
As part of the consortium, Schiebel will contribute the Camcopter S-300 Unmanned Air System (UAS), the company’s heavy-lift Vertical Take-off and Landing (VTOL) platform. The project underlines the growing need for unmanned systems in future naval operations.
According to the company, the Camcopter S-300 has been designed to operate in both maritime and land-based environments, provides a flexible airborne capability for Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR), as well as extended mission profiles requiring larger payloads, longer endurance and operational adaptability.
“We are proud that the CAMCOPTER® S-300 has been selected for this important European Defence initiative,” Chairman of the Schiebel Group, Hans Georg Schiebel, stated.
“SWORD is a great example of European cooperation in a highly relevant maritime defence domain. The selection of the S-300 highlights the platform’s potential to support future ASW concepts with a flexible, unmanned and operationally efficient capability.”
Led by TKMS Atlas Elektronik, the SWORD consortium includes partners from across Europe and supports the European Defence Fund’s objective of strengthening collaborative defence research and innovation within the European Union.