Sagem signed a contract with SIMMAD, the French Air Force Support Organization, on behalf of the French Ministry of Defense, to provide in-service maintenance for the Sperwer tactical unmanned aerial system (UAS) deployed by the French army, the companies announced Monday. The contract covers all maintenance, repair and technical support services for systems in service with the army until 2014, Sagem said. Financial terms of the contract were not disclosed.
Sperwer UASs, which are launched in automatic mode by a catapult and recovered with a parachute, have been deployed in Afghanistan since 2003 to support NATO’s air-land forces. They include a gyrostabilized EO/IR payload and digital datalink in Ku-Ban bandwidth. Sagem has produced 25 complete Sperwer tactical drone systems to date, including 140 aircraft. Air transportable in C-130 type freight air- craft and mobile on light trucks, the entire modular system includes a Ground Control Station (GCS) for flight control and mission analysis (including 3D mission planning, C4I connection, Geo- graphical Information System, etc.); a Ground Data Terminal (GDT) housing the digital radio-link terminal; a catapult; and the air vehicle.
The contract also includes an order with Robonic Oy, the Finnish subsidiary of Sagem, for two Kontio towed pneumatic catapult systems.
Sagem’s Dijon and Poitiers plants will produce the optronics modules for this contract, while the company’s Montluçon plant will work on the ground segment and the aircraft.