Leonardo’s leading-edge AWHero RUAS (Rotary Uncrewed Aerial System) has received basic military certification from Italy’s DAAA (Direzione degli Armamenti Aeronautici e per l’Aeronavigabilità), the Directorate for Air Armaments and Airworthiness. This achievement marks the world’s first military certification for a RUAS in the 200kg class.
AWHero’s design, development, production and support meet military airworthiness authority requirements delivering the highest levels of mission safety, reliability and availability to Armed Forces. The military certification includes embarked operations and highlights the robustness of AWHero's design criteria and approach, paving the way for further development, integration and validation of expanded capabilities designed and planned for the system. This military certification is also based on elements of the worldwide recognized STANAG4702 standard.
AWHero design leverages on Leonardo’s strength and extensive experience in rotorcraft development, system integration and embarked helicopter operations. Since 2019, the platform has been conducting maritime surveillance capability demonstrations on ships within the framework of the OCEAN2020 initiative, the European Defense Fund strategic research program for naval surveillance technology and maritime safety, comprising 43 organizations across Europe and led by Leonardo.
AWHero is also being evaluated in international tenders. Northrop Grumman Australia and Leonardo Australia’s team has been shortlisted to proceed to the next phase of the SEA129 Phase 5 program for the acquisition of a maritime uncrewed aerial system designed to deliver a deployable intelligence, surveillance, reconnaissance and targeting capability to the Royal Australian Navy (RAN). The Northrop Grumman and Leonardo proposal will enhance capability effects and tactical decision-making during RAN maritime operations.
Leonardo is the only company in Europe, which is able to provide complete solutions by designing and developing all the elements of unmanned systems: platforms, sensors, mission systems, control stations and offer customers a certified low risk, high effective, fully integrated capability.
Leonardo is a key partner and contributor to significant European drone programs and Leonardo’s expertise and capabilities in the sector have been extensively demonstrated during international exercises. Leonardo has developed uncrewed systems and technologies, including anti-drone capabilities and unmanned traffic management (UTM) systems.
The continuous development and integration of cutting-edge solutions across all domains of remotely-piloted and autonomous/semi-autonomous systems and technologies is a key element of Leonardo’s BeTomorrow2030 Strategic Plan.
Leonardo, a global high-technology company, is among the top ten world players in Aerospace, Defense and Security and Italy’s main industrial company. Organized into five business divisions, Leonardo has a significant industrial presence in Italy, the United Kingdom, Poland and the USA, where it also operates through subsidiaries such as Leonardo DRS (defense electronics), and joint ventures and partnerships: ATR, MBDA, Telespazio, Thales Alenia Space and Avio.
Leonardo competes in the most important international markets by leveraging its areas of technological and product leadership (Helicopters, Aircraft, Aerostructures, Electronics, Cyber Security and Space).
Listed on the Milan Stock Exchange (LDO), in 2019 Leonardo recorded consolidated revenues of €13.8 billion and invested €1.5 billion in Research and Development (R&D). The Group has been part of the Dow Jones Sustainability Index (DJSI) since 2010 and was named as sustainability global leader in the Aerospace & Defense sector for the second year in a row of DJSI in 2020.
