The French Army has received the first three Spyranger mini-drones from Thales, the French defense procurement agency DGA announced on June 15.
Another 10 systems are slated for the delivery by the end of the year, while a total of 35 will be in the French Army’s inventory by 2021, it was further stated.
The systems were delivered under a contract for up to 210 UAVs awarded to Thales in late 2016. Each Spyranger system consists of three mini-UAVs, a ground station and associated technical support.
According to DGA, the Spyranger is replacing the Drac system which was fielded in 2008.
Twice as powerful as its predecessor, this new mini-drone system will allow the army to strengthen its intelligence capacity as close as possible to the contact zone. The Spyranger will be used to provide support to a combined arms tactical group, support the neutralization of strong points and contribute to firing maneuvers by providing a “remote airborne eye” able to adjust shooting rounds on a target.
The system is transportable in a backpack, and can perform observation missions over a period of 2 hours and 30 minutes, covering a range of 30 km. It features a gyrostabilized multi-sensor optronic payload, tactical data link, and command and control software.
