UV Online 
Dubai 09: Further details on Mantis emerge
Andy Wilson, BAE Systems' business development director for autonomous systems, has revealed further details of the first flight of the UK's Mantis MALE UAV, which is believed to have occurred on 21 October.
Wilson also gave journalists a first view of flight footage from the trials.
'Mantis completed its first set of flight trials last weekend,' Wilson said on 15 November. 'A lot of the programme is still sensitive so the [UK] Ministry of Defence is phasing the release of information on the project,' he added.
The maiden flight of the UAV is several months after when the company originally intended to fly the aircraft. It was delivered to Australia for the flight trials at Woomera test range in April and the company expected to have the first flight in May.
However the MoD and BAE systems took the decision not to overly rush the programme and ensure that the aircraft had a full series of both low speed and high speed taxi runs before the first flight. Weather delays to those taxi runs caused a knock on delay in to a period when the company did not have access to the range. An additional stress was placed on the programme when the MoD asked for the Herti to be redeployed to Afghanistan placing a premium on BAE personnel to support both programmes.
Wilson pointed out that from contract award to first flight in only 19 months was still good going for such a project with the final assembly of the aircraft only beginning in January this year. He added that it was also the first flight anywhere of a fully autonomous, twin-engined UAV. The aircraft is believed to have made a total of five flights that have proved the airframe, but the company has also been able to do limited testing of the sensors.
Mantis, which has been jointly funded by the MoD and BAE Systems, has been designed to provide deep and persistent 24 hour-all weather intelligence, surveillance, target acquisition and reconnaissance. 'The MoD wanted a large UAV that was entirely within the control of the UK and which the imagery was entirely in the control of the UK,' Wilson stated.
The flight of this 'Spiral 1' aircraft proves the design of the aircraft, which is currently fitted with an L-3 Wescam MX-30 EO/IR sensor and a Polytech 350 camera (also installed on the Herti) offering full motion video. Mantis also has all the plumbing necessary to also carry a radar. Wilson said that BAE systems was now in detailed discussions with the MoD to develop a Spiral 2 aircraft. He added that there would need to be a balance between affordability and capability, but that the MoD was keen to move to Spiral 2 as quickly as possible.
Although the aircraft is predominantly viewed as an ISTAR platform by both the MoD and BAE Systems it is also expected to address the need to engage 'fleeting targets'. Weaponisation of Mantis is part of the expected spiral developments although Wilson would not be drawn on when that might happen.
By Darren Lake, Dubai
Email this to a friend.