Although the first two light surveillance and reconnaissance aircraft were delivered to 1/54 “Dunkerque” Airborne Electronic Squadron in 2020 [ALSR] “VADER” [pour Vecteur aéroporté de désignation, d’observation et de reconnaissance] were declared operational by the General Directorate of Armament [DGA] until March 2022… And this during the two Transall C-160G “Gabriel” dedicated to the collection of electromagnetic information [ROEM]They were preparing to withdraw at the worst possible time, as the war in Ukraine was just beginning.
Normally, the suitability of these two VADORs should have been pronounced in the summer of 2021 following the assessments carried out under the auspices of the ISR brand team. [renseignement, surveillance, reconnaissance] of the Military Air Expertise Center [CEAM].
However, it turned out to be the Star Saphire optronic bullet, supplied by FLIR Systems [filiale de l’américain Teledyne Technologies Inc] did not live up to expectations. For financial reasons, this system was chosen at the expense of more efficient solutions – such as the Wescam MX-20 on the French Navy’s Atlantique 2.
Be that as it may, the two VADORs of the 1/54 Dunkerque have since been regularly deployed on missions in the Black Sea region. And a priori they are always equipped with the Star Saphire optronic sphere… In fact, on June 22, the French group Safran Electronics & Defense announced that it had just been selected by the DGA, the ALSRs with Air & Space Forces [AAE] with the Euroflir 410D airborne electro-optical system. This is the same device chosen for the Patroller tactical drone and the “Special Ops” version of the NH-90 TTH helicopter.
“Able to detect and identify threats several tens of kilometers away”, thanks in particular to the integration of a very long-range multispectral telescope and a very efficient line-of-sight stabilization, the Euroflir 410D will allow the French Armed Forces to discreetly carry out identification -, surveillance and reconnaissance missions that were transferred to the VADORs day and night, even in very bad weather conditions,” emphasizes Safran Electronics & Defense.
As a reminder, the Military Programming Act [LPM] The current Air Force had planned to equip the AAE with eight ALSRs, these aircraft should join the air base [BA] 709 from Cognac and integrate the 33rd Surveillance, Reconnaissance and Attack Wing [ESRA]. In the regulation currently being examined by Parliament, however, this target has been reduced to just three aircraft, with the leasing of ISR capacities being favoured.
“In the field we realized that upgrading the capabilities of the old ALSR was difficult and ultimately leasing wasn’t a bad solution to have a system at the latest level of performance. It’s unfortunate, but that’s the way it is: you have to be pragmatic and realistic,” said General Stéphane Mille, AfWA chief of staff, during a hearing in the National Assembly.
Photo: Aerospace Forces