Airbus revealed its secret drone

On November 5 on November 2019, during a media briefing at the Airbus facility in Manching, Germany, the company revealed its secret stealth unmanned aerial vehicle LOUT.

At the booth was an 4-ton diamond-shaped UAV, the development of which started in the 2007 year, in the 2010 the German military department connected to it was interested in the development of technologies for reducing broadband signature. They will be in demand in the implementation of the project to create a new Franco-German stealth fighter designed to replace the Rafale and Eurofighter.

According to Airbus, the development of LOUT was carried out taking into account three tasks: reduced radar, visual, infrared and acoustic signatures; the ability to conduct electronic warfare; the ability to regulate the electromagnetic radiation emitted from the apparatus.

It is noteworthy that the photographs shown by Airbus show a transparent dome. This could indicate that a manned version of the product is possible. However, this was necessary to verify the invisibility of various types of coatings.

This is just a demonstrator, the path to creating a real invisible drone is probably quite long and complicated.

- notes the publication The Aviationist.

Comments

[Aerodrome]

a mockup as a mockup ... probably at any stand in any design office there are a lot of such ..

[Thrifty]

Aerodrome it's a tolerant euromarket the second one is the same please yourself, why

[cost]

The author titled the article - "Airbus revealed its secret drone"
and cited the proof of the photo:

with the same success it was possible to give a reproduction of Malevich's painting "Black Square"

[Thrifty]

At least some characteristics led the adversaries

[vadson]

At the booth was a 4-ton diamond-shaped UAV, few? but there are no more of them. I haven’t been in the air, and if it does, it won’t be soon

[Herman 4223]

It is written that this is a 4-ton apparatus. So his main task will be intelligence. A large payload with such a maximum take-off weight will not work. Yes, and his size should then be not very large.

[andrewkor]

Personally, he himself saw in flight a cord model of an ax (!), Why not fly to this rhombus?

[Thrifty]

You have come up with a good idea - to make a cordon model of the European Union, and launch it as far as possible. ..to irrevocably fly. ..

[Avior]

The cord model will not fly far, no matter how much it may be.
flies on a wire in a circle.

[Ros 56]

I’ll tell you more, at the end of the eighties, the World Model Air Sports Championship was held in Kiev, so even the door flew at the grand opening. In general, the modelers didn’t start, and the iron saw a flying and stylized eagle bird and various other things.

[rotmistr60]

the path to creating a real invisible drone is probably quite long and complex

The work has been going on for 12 years and so far only "just a demonstrator". In another 12 years, a possibly flying model will appear, and then in the Nth number of years, something real is also possible, because "the path to creating a real UAV is quite long and difficult."

[rocket757]

Pictures are cartoons, then there will be cartoons, mockups ... before the product, it is not yet known how much.

[Errr]

Quote: rocket757

Pictures cartoons, then there will be cartoons ... before the product does not yet know how much.

Here I have nothing more to do but to quote Vladimir Soloukhin's "Vladimirskie gorselyki":

Daughter forester for a long time and diligently told us the way and spoke seven miles to heaven and all the forest.

[rocket757]

I want to express the obvious, pan-European aircraft manufacturing concern, this is really a GIANT, with huge financial, technological, production and design potential .... maybe they DO NOT, just ???
In short incomprehensible! sales of half a liter will not help.

[Errr]

Here for me personally there is one interesting point. It turns out that the English abbreviation LOUT (Low Observable UAV Testbed - Flying Laboratory of an unobtrusive UAV), when translated into Russian as just the word "Lout", means nothing more than "uncouth man" or "dork", which is frankly self-ironic. Apparently, guys with a good sense of humor are involved in this project. They quite often get very sensible things at the end. And it is not a fact that in the end the flying will be exactly the same "diamond" as the one presented to the public today.

[rocket757]

As a possible option - they just are in no hurry, because there is no urgent need. They work for a long time, and at the output they really can get a product with interesting, outstanding performance characteristics.

[The leader of the Redskins]

This is just a demonstrator, the path to creating a real invisible drone is probably quite long and complicated.

Did Captain Evidence visit us?)

[usr01]

The first photo (in the title) - it seemed that a torn mattress ...

[Azazelo]

My kitchen table looks like this when I set the tablecloth

[Gray brother]

I am wildly sorry - where are his engines? And then I only see the air intakes, this is clearly not enough.

[rocket757]

It is they in Tibet or else where the construction of "vimana" has spied / slammed ... and there Eastern / Indian fairy tales 1000 + 1 nights! Why be surprised then?

[aszzz888]

It’s just a demonstrator, путь to creating a real invisible drone probably quite long and complicated

- notes the publication The Aviationist.

And, campaign, the way it will be.

[boriz]

"This could indicate that a manned version of the product is possible."
I don’t know to whom this could indicate ... What kind of pilot can be on a military vehicle weighing 4 tons. Not WWII, come on ...

[Sanichsan]

Tell me, why does the drone have a cabin?

[Errr]

Quote: SanichSan

Tell me, why does the drone have a cabin?

With the help of LOUT, they are trying to find the minimum signatures for the future Euro fighter, but there are no manned fighters without a cockpit.
From the text of the article:

At the booth was a 4-ton diamond-shaped UAV, the development of which was launched in 2007, in 2010, the German military department connected to it, interested in the development of technologies for reducing broadband signature. They will be in demand in the implementation of the project to create a new Franco-German stealth fighter designed to replace the Rafale and Eurofighter.