UV Online 
Australia confirms MOTS UAS strategy but will trial Herti
The Australian government has confirmed that its revised strategy for the troubled Joint Project 129 tactical UAV project will be predicated on a military off the shelf (MOTS) solution.
The government has also confirmed that it wants to operationally deploy the new tactical UAS into service in Afghanistan as soon as possible.
Australian parliamentary secretary for defence procurement Greg Combet says that ‘Defence has now been tasked by the Minister to find an off the shelf solution that can be put in theatre as soon as possible.’
In parallel the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) has given internal approvals for the operational deployment of the BAE Systems Herti UAS into Afghanistan to gain experience in the use of unmanned systems ahead of its planned fielding of an endurance UAS in cooperation with the US navy Broad Area Maritime Surveillance programme.
The Herti deployment will be fully funded for a six month period, with partial monies coming from the Australian Army – using budget allocations originally set aside for the original JP129 acquisition project. An official Australian government announcement on the Herti deployment is expected later this year.
The RAAF plan to operate Herti as an adjunct to its Lockheed Martin AP-3C Orion maritime surveillance aircraft, which are being used as overland surveillance and reconnaissance assets. The UAS will be supported from RAAF’s forward operational base in the United Arab Emirates, but will be launched, operated and recovered in theatre alongside Australian Army units in southern Afghanistan.
BAE Systems Australia confirms that it has been seeking to demonstrate the BAE Systems Herti UAS in Afghanistan for the RAAF.
A BAE spokesman has told uvonline.com that ‘there have been some talks’ about the demonstration concept but declined to provide further details. ‘The United Kingdom army has been flying it in Afghanistan…People have been talking about [a RAAF] demonstration.’
A single Herti 1B air vehicle and its ground support systems was deployed to Afghanistan by the UK Royal Air Force midway through 2007 as part of a funded exploration of UAS capabilities by that service under its ongoing Project Morrigan initiative.
The two prime candidates for the replacement JP129 competition are the AAI RQ-7B Shadow 200 and the Elbit Systems Hermes 450. Any Shadow deal would be via the US foreign military sales system, while the Hermes 450 offering is for a services arrangement via Thales Australia and Thales UK.
The original JP129 competition was won by Boeing Australia, offering the Israeli Aerospace Industries I-View 250 system. That acquisition project was cancelled in early September.
By Peter La Franchi, Canberra
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