Australian defence technology and aviation company Airspeed has successfully demonstrated inflight release of its Irukandji supersonic target drone in unpowered trials at the Woomera Test Range in South Australia.
The milestone follows successful carriage trials of the Irukandji glide vehicle aboard the company’s S211 test aircraft at the end of last year.
Airspeed is hoping Irukandji – named after the Australian stinging jellyfish – will be a successor to the retired Beechcraft AQM-37 supersonic target drone of which more than 5,500 were produced during and after the Cold War.
Unlike the liquid rocket motor powered AQM-37, Irukandji will be powered by an Australian-made solid rocket motor manufactured by Airspeed in concert with Thales Australia and the Defence Science and Technology Group (DSTG) under the Advanced Rocket Motor Technology Demonstrator (ARMTD) project.
In the latest trials, Irukandji glide vehicles were released at medium altitudes then flown in controlled flight to a ground target further down range.
Airspeed said this demonstrated safe release characteristics and stable flying qualities around the flight vehicles’ principal axes.
Airspeed Managing Director Steve Barlow expressed thanks for the support from Australian Warbirds Ltd, DSTG, the Civil Aviation Safety Authority and Air Force Test Ranges.
“The enthusiasm from fellow Australians to design and build and test sovereign weapon capabilities is truly motivational. My thanks also, of course, to our Airspeed people for their long hours of hard work that made this possible,” he said.
Airspeed said Irukandji will be an indigenous supersonic target with a pathway to a sovereign weapons capability, with a range of 450 kilometres and a release mass of only 250 kilograms,
Next steps will include test flight fitted with part-scale solid rocket motors and more extensive transponder and flight termination equipment for live in-flight firing of those rocket motors.
The company said development of Irukandji had been a self-funded R and D activity by Airspeed.
However, the project fell squarely within the stated aim of the government’s Guided Weapons and Explosive Ordnance (GWEO) Plan published last October.
That’s to enable Australian companies to contribute to the design and manufacture of a wider range of GWEO components and types, including through co-development of future weapons.
“As such, Airspeed will be seeking funding and support from Canberra to achieve all that is possible with this exciting sovereign capability,” the company said.