en.Wedoany.com Reported - German aviation modification company Aerodata AG is set to conduct the maiden flight of its self-developed Medium-Altitude Long-Endurance (MALE) UAV, the AeroForce X. This twin-engine, twin-boom UAV was designed and assembled within 18 months, with the first flight planned for October.
Headquartered in Braunschweig, Germany, Aerodata primarily specializes in modifying Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance (ISR) aircraft. The company disclosed the UAV development plan in December and showcased a prototype at a nearby airport earlier this month, just before the opening of the ILA Berlin Air Show. Aerodata CEO and President Neset Tukenmez told Aviation Week that the company had long sought to integrate unmanned platforms into its portfolio, but existing platforms were either too small or, if sourced from the U.S. or Israel, unsuitable for customer use cases, ultimately leading to the decision to invest in a self-developed platform.
Aerodata funded the R&D with support from its shareholders. Tukenmez did not disclose the investment amount, only stating it was "enormous for a small company." The UAV weighs 5 tons, with a payload capacity of 1.3 tons and a maximum endurance of 40 hours. Tukenmez noted that the aircraft is priced in the tens of millions of dollars, significantly lower than other comparable platforms such as the General Atomics MQ-9. He also emphasized that the aircraft is 100% German-made, including the engine, mission suite, and communication systems, thus exempt from International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR). He did not reveal the engine source or whether it uses a piston or turboprop engine, but pointed out that German industry has deep expertise in piston engines.
Aerodata's engineering team has completed stress tests on the 26-meter wingspan wing, with ground taxiing and rolling tests imminent. Flight tests are planned within Germany. Tukenmez stated that obtaining regulatory approval would have been nearly impossible a few years ago, but the regulatory mindset has now completely changed. He is encouraged by the German government's strategy to boost the aviation sector, with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz describing aviation as "one of the great growth industries of our time" during the air show.
Aerodata has received significant interest in the AeroForce X, primarily from outside Europe, and has been engaged in in-depth discussions since disclosing details. European interest is currently limited, but contacts with German authorities are ongoing. In its standard configuration, the AeroForce X is equipped with an electro-optical camera and radar, with the option to add signals intelligence capabilities. The company is also exploring the possibility of carrying interceptor UAVs for counter-single-direction drone attack missions. Aerodata is primarily targeting military certification, but the design has been developed with future civil certification in mind, which Tukenmez describes as a "long-term goal."
The European MALE UAV market is highly competitive. Airbus is leading the development of the Eurodrone, with the first prototype expected to make its maiden flight in 2027, six years behind the project's launch. The Hammerhead UAV, a derivative of the Piaggio P.180 Avanti turboprop aircraft, failed in development after its prototype crashed into the Mediterranean Sea. Leonardo recently partnered with Turkey's Baykar to enter the European market. The AeroForce X bears a visual resemblance to Turkish Aerospace Industries' (TAI) twin-engine Aksungur UAV, but Tukenmez stated that Aerodata's aircraft is in a different weight class, being 1.7 tons heavier than the TAI platform.
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