On March 26, Airbus showed off a low-cost anti-drone concept aircraft with autonomous capabilities at the unmanned systems trade show in Bonn, Germany. The drone, called "Low Cost Air Defense System" (LOAD), is designed to reduce the cost of intercepting cheap weapons and better address the challenges faced by modern air defense systems.

  This type of drone is developed based on the German Do-DT25 unmanned target aircraft. It is 3.1 meters long and has a wingspan of 2.5 meters. It has a maximum flight speed of about 556 kilometers per hour and a combat radius of about 96 kilometers. Each drone can carry 2 to 3 guided missiles. It is rapidly deployed with mobile pneumatic catapults and can be reused through parachute recycling and used to attack enemy drones and other ground and sea targets.

  Airbus said that a prototype equipped with two missiles will be tested before the end of this year and will be ready for mass production by 2027. Next, the company plans to integrate LOAD with other drone-mounted platforms, such as the "European Drone" project. In the future, LOAD can enhance the air defense capabilities of areas that are difficult to cover on ground air defense radars. It is reported that this type of drone was independently developed by Europe, which is in line with Europe's efforts to get rid of its dependence on US technology. Its exports will not be restricted by the United States in the future.

[Editor in charge: Gao Qiang]