ISTRES, FRANCE--(Marketwire - Dec 1, 2012) - Today, the nEUROn, Europe's unmanned
combat air vehicle (UCAV) stealth technology demonstrator,
successfully
completed its maiden flight from the Dassault Aviation company's flight
test
base in Istres, in collaboration with the flight test personnel of the
French
defense procurement agency (DGA).
The nEUROn was launched in 2005 by the customer, DGA, and involves
France,
Italy, Sweden, Spain, Greece and Switzerland. It defines a future
for the
aeronautic excellence of Europe.
With Dassault Aviation as prime contractor, the program was designed to
pool the
skills and know-how of Alenia Aermacchi (Italy), Saab (Sweden),
EADS-CASA
(Spain), HAI (Greece), RUAG (Switzerland) and Thales (France).
With a length of 10 meters, a wingspan of 12.5 meters and an empty weight
of 5
tons, the aircraft is powered by a Rolls-Royce Turbomeca "Adour" engine.
The nEUROn will continue to undergo testing in France until 2014, at which
time
it will be sent to Vidsel in Sweden for a series of operational trials. It
will
then go to the Perdadesfogu range (Italy) for further tests, in
particular
firing and stealth measurements.
About Dassault Aviation
With more than 8,000 military and civil aircraft delivered to 75 countries
over
the past 60 years, and having logged nearly 20 million flight hours to
date,
Dassault Aviation can offer recognized know-how and experience in the
design,
development, sale and support of all types of aircraft, from the Rafale
fighter
to the Falcon range of high-end business jets. Dassault Aviation's
unique
experience as architect of complex airborne systems ideally positions
it to
offer strategic expertise, innovative operational solutions and an
efficient
approach to cooperation.
www.dassault-aviation.com
Twitter: @Dassault_OnAir
For high resolution photo of the nEUROn, visit:
http://mediapro.dassault-aviation.com/
For high resolution videos of the nEUROn, visit:
ftp://planimonteur.com
Login: neuron
Password: istres2012
Dassault Aviation:The nEUROn makes its maiden flight:
http://hugin.info/143388/R/1661932/538518.pdf
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Source: Dassault Aviation via Thomson Reuters ONE
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