Airbus and Kratos Defense & Security Solutions have completed the first European flight of the U740 Valkyrie uncrewed combat aircraft, advancing their effort to deliver a combat-ready collaborative combat aircraft for Germany and other European armed forces by 2029. The flight took place at an unnamed Northern European test facility and demonstrated runway-independent rocket-assisted take-off, manoeuvres at different altitudes and speeds of up to Mach 0.8, and in-flight mission changes.
The aircraft flew on 29 September before Airbus installed its Multi-platform Autonomous Reconfigurable and Secure (MARS) mission system. The next flight campaign, expected in the first quarter of 2027, is planned to introduce MARS, which will provide control of the aircraft’s software, mission applications, data and hardware. A later test is expected to demonstrate teaming with a Eurofighter.
The European flight also addressed regulatory and airspace-integration requirements for military uncrewed aircraft. The U740 is designed for autonomous operation, remote piloting and cooperation with crewed fighters. It is 9.1 metres long, has an 8.2-metre wingspan, an internal weapons bay and external underwing payload stations. Airbus gives its approximate maximum take-off weight as three tonnes, range as more than 5,000 kilometres and service ceiling as 45,000 feet.