Teamwork makes the dream work for European interoperability

As the autonomy of uncrewed aerial systems (UAS) increases, teaming these technologies with crewed aircraft will be vital. A European Union‑funded project, code-named MUSHER (manned-unmanned teaming syste for helicopters), aims to develop building blocks for crewed-uncrewed teaming (CUC-T) capabilities for a future European framework of interoperability of assets.

MUSHER’s scope is enormous with, quite literally, a lot of moving parts. Parts that are moving simultaneously (and independently) in two different countries. Uniting aerospace and defence leaders across the continent, the project aimed to team helicopters and UAS from different companies, operate them together in different countries and develop a European framework, including a common exchange protocol. In the final tests, Airbus’ H130 FlightLab teamed with its VSR700 UAS to perform an operation in France, while concurrently in Italy a Leonardo helicopter and optionally piloted vehicle (OPV) flew together. 

Flight trials included joint operations of the Airbus H130 with the OPV in Italy with real-time payload data transfer through satellite connection, as well as the interaction between the VSR700 and the Italian helicopter — proving that crewed helicopters and UAS from different companies and different countries, operating across large distances, could be integrated within a single CUC-T system. Thales provided a supervision station and mission debriefing station, while the operational concepts of the tests were then defined by the French, Italian and Spanish Ministries of Defence. 

Team building and building teaming

Vanessa Blaise, a Research and Technology Programme Manager at Airbus Helicopters, led the company’s contributions to the project. With such an extensive list of stakeholders it is not surprising that Blaise stresses the importance of teamwork between the human participants — before even mentioning the complexity required to deliver a complex demonstration: “There was a great spirit of cooperation.” Effective collaboration was essential because with so many participants working on a project with such fine margins and fixed windows of opportunity, there was real pressure to deliver. “You have to be on time,” states Blaise. “Knowing that in early October, every helicopter, drone and piece of software had to be ready to demonstrate to personnel from the participating Ministries of Defence. Thankfully, it went well.”

In order to achieve this interoperability demonstration, around 80 colleagues from Airbus Helicopters contributed to MUSHER. “We used the FlightLab and VSR700, as one of the principles of the project was to use existing technology where possible,” explains Blaise. “Nevertheless, we had to define the system architecture and perform some development in particular for the VSR700 ground station controlling the data payload and to install a tablet on the H130 [a remote mission station].”

Testing solutions for testing times

The in-flight testing aimed at demonstrating levels of interoperability (LOI) 2 to 4, from direct receipt of UAS data by the crewed helicopters and the ground station (LOI 2), to the control and monitoring of the UAS from the helicopters (LOI 4). One scenario showcased UAS and crewed helicopters on an anti-piracy mission. The UAS initially conducted a surveillance mission. Once it spotted suspicious activity on a boat, the crewed helicopter joined the scene and took full control of the UAS in preparation for an intervention. Teaming helicopters and UAS is becoming increasingly important as they can perform a range of missions, to protect people and critical infrastructure. “The interoperability demonstration performed even better than expected,” emphasises Blaise. “With the help of drones, you can protect and increase survivability, limiting the loss of helicopters. This demonstration shows we can deliver what customers and operators expect in the short term while helping guide our future development and research.”