Will the Remote Carrier drone from the FCAS program be at the heart of the standard? Rafale F5?

If the fighter plane Rafale from Dassault Aviation is a robust and efficient aircraft in many areas, whether it is air-to-air combat or penetration at very low altitude through reconnaissance or nuclear strike, it is an area in which the The French device fully surpasses all of its competitors, scalability.

Indeed, unlike the Swedish Gripen, the Eurofighter Typhoon and even with the F35, the French aircraft was modernized in successive layers up to the F3R standard, without the airframe needing to be modified. And the first Rafale F1 which equipped the 12F flotilla of French naval aeronautics in 2001 to replace the antique F8 Crusader, are flying or will soon fly to the same F3R standard as the latest aircraft to come off the assembly line.

The F4 standard will however create an exception in this spectacular and remarkable balance sheet, since only the most recent devices can be brought to the F4.2 standard, the very one that will allow the evolution to the later F5 standard planned for 2030, and F6 planned for 2040, concomitantly with the entry into service of the Franco-German FCAS.

But the information collected on this F4.2 standard, like that on the future F5 standard, as well as the philosophy that emanates from the development of the FCAS program systems, suggests the anticipated arrival of a Game Changer potential for the French air forces as well as for the international customers of the Rafale from 2030: the Remote Carrier.

The Remote Carrier drone: a game changer in perspective

Remember that the Remote Carriers, because there will be several models of different size, performance and functions, are light combat drones accompanying combat aircraft to extend their detection capabilities or strike capabilities, while preserving the safety of the controlled device.

The system, the development of which has been entrusted to MBDA as part of the Armament pillar piloted by Airbus Ds for the FCAS program, will enable the Franco-German aircraft to penetrate highly contested airspaces, and eliminate threats even before that these can engage the main aircraft.

The information is still fragmentary concerning this system, to say the least, but it appears to be stealthy, to penetrate contested spaces, high subsonic to be able to accompany combat aircraft, and will have to have a radius of action and a capacity to enough to constitute operational added value.

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