Airbus Defence & Space has conducted a live test of its “Bird of Prey” interceptor drone paired with a lightweight missile, as the company explores lower-cost approaches to countering drone threats.
The test, announced on March 30, involved a modified Do-DT25 target drone engaging an aerial target using the Mark I missile developed by Frankenburg Technologies. The demonstration took place in northern Germany.
According to Airbus, the interceptor “autonomously searched [for], detected and classified a medium-sized, one-way attack drone” before engaging the target.
“After successful identification, the Bird of Prey interceptor engaged the target with a Mark I missile,” the company said, adding that the test occurred “just nine months after the project started”.
Focus on lower-cost interception
The Mark I missile weighs less than 2kg and carries a fragmentation warhead, with a reported range of up to 1.5km. It is described as a fire-and-forget system operating at high subsonic speeds.
Frankenburg Technologies CEO Kusti Salm described the missile as “a new class of low-cost, mass-manufacturable interceptor missile… creating a new cost curve for air defense”.
Airbus framed the combined system as a potential response to the growing use of low-cost one-way attack drones in modern conflicts.
“Against the current geopolitical and military backdrop, defending against kamikaze drones is a tactical priority that urgently needs to be tackled,” said Mike Schoellhorn, CEO Airbus Defence and Space. “With our Bird of Prey and Frankenburg’s affordable Mark I missiles, we are providing armed forces with an effective, cost-efficient interceptor, filling a crucial capability gap in today’s asymmetric conflict theatres.”
Designed for multiple engagements
The Bird of Prey platform is a rail-launched interceptor with a maximum takeoff weight of 160kg and a wingspan of 2.5 meters. In its current configuration, the prototype carries four Mark I missiles, while Airbus said a future operational version could carry up to eight.
The company stated that the system is intended to be reusable and capable of engaging multiple drone targets in a single mission.
Airbus and Frankenburg Technologies plan to conduct further testing throughout 2026, including flights using live warheads, as part of efforts to advance the system toward operational use.
Addressing cost imbalance in counter-UAS
The development is the latest in an ongoing effort by industry and military alike to counter the challenge of cost asymmetry in counter-UAS operations, where relatively inexpensive drones are often intercepted using significantly more costly air defense systems.
Recent conflicts involving Russia and Ukraine, as well as Iranian drone use in the Middle East, have highlighted the economic imbalance of using high-cost interceptors against low-cost threats.
Airbus said the Bird of Prey and Mark I combination is intended to serve as a mobile and complementary component within layered air and missile defense systems.
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Post Image Credit: Airbus Defence and Space
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