Airbus has consolidated its small and medium tactical uncrewed aerial systems (UAS) developed by Survey Copter, Aliaca, and Capa-X into a unified portfolio managed by its Airbus Helicopters division. The move is intended to create a more coherent approach to serving defense and security markets across Airbus’ Helicopters and Defence and Space divisions.

“By incorporating Aliaca and Capa-X into our UAS portfolio, we are building a cohesive family of products and solidifying Airbus’ position as a market leader in the tactical drone segment,” said Bruno Even, CEO of Airbus Helicopters. “With this move, we are setting up a centre of excellence that consolidates a comprehensive and complementary portfolio of uncrewed aerial systems and facilitates synergies across the teams that are working to further develop and support them. It will also accelerate the cooperation between drones and helicopters thanks to our HTeaming solution,” he added.

Uncrewed aerial systems play an expanding role in modern defense and security operations, providing real-time intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR) capabilities. They are used for missions such as target acquisition, border surveillance, firefighting, and law enforcement.

Survey Copter, based in Pierrelatte, southern France, has been designing and manufacturing light tactical drone systems since 1996, serving both civil and military customers. The company has sold more than 300 systems to domestic and international clients.

GA-ASI presents expanding fleet of uncrewed fighters in Rome
GA-ASI presents expanding fleet of uncrewed fighters in Rome
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Under the Airbus Helicopters umbrella, the new tactical UAS portfolio includes several systems tailored for different mission requirements:

  • Aliaca: a 25 kg drone carrying up to 3 kg of payload for up to six hours, optimized for reconnaissance and data collection.
  • Flexrotor: a 25 kg drone capable of carrying 8 kg of equipment for 10–12 hours, suitable for long-endurance operations.
  • Capa-X: a 120 kg system carrying up to 20 kg of payload, adaptable to multiple terrains and mission types.
  • VSR700: a 750 kg multi-mission drone designed for maritime, logistics, and combat roles.
Alongside these small and medium systems, Airbus continues to develop larger and specialized UAS platforms within its Defence and Space division. These include the Eurodrone, a long-endurance remotely piloted aircraft designed to strengthen European defense capabilities; the SIRTAP tactical UAS for land and maritime ISR missions; and the Zephyr solar-powered high-altitude platform station (HAPS), capable of stratospheric operations.

Airbus is also developing crewed-uncrewed teaming technologies, enabling helicopter and aircraft crews to directly control drones in flight. This cooperation extends the reach of sensors and surveillance beyond the line of sight while keeping manned platforms focused on their primary missions.