EDA selects Airbus for €1.1M, 48‑month Capa‑X modular M2UAS study

The European Defence Agency selected Airbus Helicopters, through its Survey Copter subsidiary, to participate in the Multi Mission Unmanned Aircraft System programme, a 48-month scoping study backed by an initial budget of roughly €1.1 million. Airbus will provide its Capa-X unmanned aerial system as the primary testbed, the company said in its announcement following the selection.

The M2UAS project will examine how a hybrid, modular uncrewed aircraft can support multiple operational missions and guide future equipment choices and drone architectures. Project documentation sets an explicit first phase of 12 months to determine current and future mission requirements, technological challenges, and possible development approaches; the full effort runs across four years with the €1.1 million budget cited for the programme.

Airbus’ public programme statement lists Capa-X technical parameters that will frame the study: a gross weight of about 120 kg, endurance near 10 hours, payload capacity up to 20 kg and a data-link range on the order of 100 km. The company positioned Capa-X as a modular, hybrid system that can be recalibrated for armed forces, public security agencies and civil or parapublic operators while complying with user-specific regulations.

The scoping study will combine operational analysis with technical experimentation to test different mission configurations suited to multi-domain operations and to optimise modular payload and equipment choices. Explicit mission types named for exploration under M2UAS include surveillance, reconnaissance, electronic warfare, weapons deployment and in-flight refuelling, tasks that the programme will assess against endurance, payload and datalink constraints.

Christophe Canguilhem, director of the Capa-X programme at Airbus Helicopters, commented on the selection: "The characteristics of the Capa-X system make it particularly well suited to the M2UAS project." He added a wider statement of intent: "We would like to thank the EDA for the trust it has placed in us. This selection is a major recognition of our expertise in tactical drone systems and reflects our commitment to supporting the development of innovative European defence capabilities."

The announced budget is €1.1 million for the four-year study; published currency conversions have placed that figure at roughly US$1.2 million to US$1.27 million. Airbus described the contract as part of a series of projects over the 48-month period that will feed into the technical and operational choices for future European unmanned aircraft architectures.

Strategically, the collaboration aims to advance indigenous European UAS capabilities and reduce dependence on external systems by testing a modular approach across a spectrum of missions. The M2UAS scoping work will deliver requirements, experiment results and technology guidance intended to shape modular drone concepts for European defence and related civil uses.