The Italian Navy has awarded a contract to Schiebel to provide the Camcompter S-100 unmanned air system (UAS).
Under the contract, Schiebel will provide the Camcompter S-100 system, training, integration and spare parts.
Schiebel Group chairman Hans Georg Schiebel said: "The Camcompter S-100 continues to be a proven and highly sought after asset in maritime operations.
"Its ability to extend a ship commander’s visible and electronic horizon to beyond what is conventionally possible is a powerful instrument that helps to counter possible threats, secure routes and control recourses at less operational cost.
"This quality has already garnered the interest of several global navies where the S-100’s robust nature has proven effective, particularly in the unforgiving maritime environment."
In addition to providing increased operational ability to Italian Navy commanders, the S-100 system is effective at sea and offers unique degrees of flexibility, versatility and persistence on board of Italian Navy ships for anti-piracy missions.
The unmanned system features a Wescam MX-10 and a Shine micro automatic identification system (AIS) to collect time-critical data during uninterrupted periods of up to six hours.
Capable of being mounted with a Schiebel-designed harpoon system to support takeoff and landing in conditions up to Sea State 5, the vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL) UAS also provides a flexible, unique means of collecting and disseminating information for decision makers.
The UAS eliminates the need for launch or recovery equipment and can operate in day and night, with a beyond line-of-sight capability out to 200km, under adverse weather conditions, both on land and at sea.
Features such as "fly-by-wire" technology, controlled by a triple-redundant flight computer, enable the UAV to accomplish its mission automatically.
