French military pilots are to get the updated forward-looking infrared functions they have been asking for as a result of their experiences in Afghanistan.
The Eurocopter EC725 Caracal helicopter has proved to be a powerful asset in its primary combat search and rescue role, and has been highly praised by the army and air force pilots flying it in Afghanistan. But crews say they want the FLIR system to be improved to allow them to track targets automatically rather than having to follow them manually, and also to allow automatic hand-off of target co-ordinates.
Sagem (hall 4, C/D91) today announced its Euroflir 350 system has been selected by Eurocopter for the Caracal. It was previously chosen for the modernisation package on the Eurocopter AS532 Cougar. System features include latest-generation Matis imager, colour night-time channel, laser rangefinder and pointer, target tracking, automatic search and geo-location.
It is understood that Eurocopter and French procurement agency DGA are assessing the use of the Nexter SH 20 20mm cannon to satisfy another wish of the crews - the replacement of the 12.7mm machine guns that the Caracal now uses for self-defence. The SH 20 has a range of up to 2,000m (6,550ft) and would mitigate the risk of small-arms fire from ground troops matching the range of the current guns.
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Source: Flight Daily News
