As part of its involvement in the FCAS program, MBDA is developing a Weapon Effects Management System. Working closely with program partners, the goal is to design software that works harmoniously with the core platform's mission systems and sensor suite, capable of providing the best threat response and usable at the most time. appropriate, thus maximizing the overall effectiveness of the mission.
In an increasingly complex operating environment, a pilot, or even a remote operator, will need the assistance of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML) - characteristics of a weapon effects management capability - to reduce its cognitive load and facilitate the coordination of all the complex armaments available in a context of conflict. It could also be that the best effect does not come from the main system platform, but from an added unmanned system or an Uncrewed Combact Aerial Vehicle (UCAV), or even from land or naval systems in a larger battle context, or from a combination of these. A further feature of the system is to exploit the detection and data-link capabilities on an armament to contribute to a mission system, thus increasing situational awareness. This is what MBDA's weapon effects capability aims to accomplish, providing operators with the optimal and fastest solution possible.
Chris Allam, Managing Director of MBDA UK and Executive Group Director Engineering, said: “At MBDA we know that networked weapons, as well as their ability to be cooperative and usable even in swarms, will provide an operational advantage in future battle scenarios. The Future Combat Air System will also have the advantage of information in that same context. The integration of these two advantages will lead to a real optimization of the effects, making it easy to use complex weapons ".
Lorenzo Mariani, Managing Director of MBDA Italy and Executive Group Director Sales and Business Development, underlined: “MBDA is able to provide customers with the ability to manage the effects in a cooperative way, as well as all the technologies necessary to counter the future, increasingly challenging threats. These capabilities will be the basis of the best performing next generation multi-domain systems. The FCAS program is another great opportunity to cooperate internationally and exploit the advanced capabilities of each country to offer the market new cutting-edge services ". Working in Team Tempest from the beginning of the program allows MBDA to design and evaluate the Weapon Effects Management System together with all other partners of the FCAS program, in line with the goal of designing a complete system from the beginning, from sensors to armaments.
