Airbus goes further than before in arming C295
Airbus Military Aircraft has conducted flight tests of the armed C295 in Seville, Spain. (Photo: Airbus)
Airbus caused something of a stir last week at the SOFINS exhibition in Bordeaux by announcing that it has held flight tests of an armed version of the C295.
Miguel Candeal Morales, head of airborne ISR marketing at the Spain-based manufacturer, told Shephard: ‘The tests were carried out in flight and on the ground for over two months earlier this year in Seville.’
Airbus had presented plans for an armed C295 at previous defence exhibitions, but the latest development is a new step.
A wide variety of configurations have been tested and qualified; for instance, a two-sided manual
Our news & analysis is now part of Defence Insight®
A Basic-level or higher Defence Insight subscription is now required to view this content.
More from Air Warfare
-
V-22 Osprey safety upgrade moves towards wider fleet installation under $35.5 million deal
Bell Boeing will supply 73 additional ODSSHI kits as NAVAIR prepares to introduce predictive drive-system monitoring across US and Japanese V-22 fleets.
-
AFA 2026: USAF examines uncrewed cargo aircraft for contested logistics
The US Air Force is evaluating demonstrators for uncrewed cargo missions as it considers logistics requirements across the Pacific and other contested environments.
-
Europe risks losing control of CUAS production capacity as manufacturers look abroad
European counter-drone developers are securing early orders in the Middle East while slow domestic acquisition processes threaten to redirect production capacity, expertise and investment away from Europe.
-
India’s rotary-wing capability gap grows as IMRH programme delays persist
With IMRH and DBMRH potentially years from service, India faces a widening rotary-wing capability gap that could drive further foreign purchases even as HAL and Safran build the foundations of an indigenous successor.
-
AFA 2026: Swarm Aero eyes 2027 Gamera flight as Textron/Merlin reveal SkyCourier UX
Two new uncrewed aircraft concepts target very different US military requirements, from massed long-range strike to autonomous logistics. Shephard spoke with executives from Swarm Aero, Textron Aviation and Merlin Labs at this year's AFA Air, Space & Cyber conference to learn more about their capabilities.