Airbus Defence and Space is preparing two uncrewed combat aircraft based on the Kratos XQ-58 Valkyrie for their first flight equipped with a European mission system, the company said.
The aircraft are being prepared at Airbus facilities in Manching, Germany, and are expected to conduct their first flight later in 2026. The effort is part of a program aimed at providing the German Air Force with an operational Uncrewed Collaborative Combat Aircraft (UCCA) capability by 2029.
The two aircraft were acquired from U.S. defense company Kratos Defense & Security Solutions and are being modified to integrate Airbus’ European-developed mission system known as Multiplatform Autonomous Reconfigurable and Secure (MARS).
According to Airbus, the MARS architecture includes an artificial intelligence-supported software component called MindShare designed to manage mission tasks and coordinate groups of manned and unmanned platforms.
“By combining the Kratos Valkyrie with our MARS mission system, we are offering the German customer a proven uncrewed combat aircraft with a sovereign European mission system,” said Marco Gumbrecht, head of key account Germany at Airbus Defence and Space.
Kratos said the aircraft could operate independently, in groups of unmanned systems or in coordinated operations with manned aircraft.
To support manned-unmanned teaming operations, Airbus is also working with Rafael Advanced Defense Systems to enhance the Litening 5 Advanced Targeting Pod used on the Eurofighter Typhoon with additional connectivity capabilities. Airbus said this would allow the aircraft to function as a command platform for unmanned systems with relatively minor updates to avionics.
The Valkyrie drone has a length of about 9.1 meters and a wingspan of 8.2 meters. It has a range of more than 5,000 kilometers, a maximum takeoff weight of about three tons and can operate at altitudes up to 45,000 feet.
The aircraft first flew in the United States in 2019. Airbus said the variant equipped with its MARS system is expected to conduct its maiden flight later this year.