TALOS consortium, led by CILAS, will pave the way to EU high-power lasers
As part of the «Preparatory Action on Defence Research» (PADR), the European Defence Agency (EDA) launched in March 2018 several calls for proposals in order to prepare the future defence capabilities of the European Union.
At the head of a consortium gathering 16 companies, laboratories and universities from 9 European countries, CILAS has answered the call for proposals on high-power laser effector.
CILAS consortium’s project, called TALOS (Tactical Advanced Laser Optical System) aims to create European capabilities in laser technologies, for the purpose of a development program of a laser effector for defence applications by 2025.
CILAS, expert in laser and optronics, will lead this project which will last 3 years with the aim of making an innovative technologies demonstration in the field of laser and propagation and of proposing a roadmap.
The TALOS project will develop and demonstrate some of the most critical Laser Directed Energy Weapon (LDEW) technologies paving the way to the design and build of an EU high-power laser effector to be integrated in military applications by 2025.
TALOS will lead to the development of a compact design laser able to quickly and precisely neutralize an agile target (i.e. RAM, UAV) while significantly minimizing collateral damages. The solution can also be integrated on different platforms (maritime, land and air payloads).
TALOS brings together 16 beneficiaries and 4 linked third parties from 9 European countries and is a well-balanced mix of industrial and academic capabilities:
Optronics and laser technology developers:
- AMS Technologies – Poland
- ArianeGroup – France
- CILAS – France
- Deutsches Zentrum für Luft und Raumfahrt (DLR) – Germany
- Institute of Photonics and Electronics, Czech Academy of Sciences (IPE) – Czech Republic
- MBDA France, UK and Italy
- Military University of Technology (WAT) – Poland
- Office National d’Etudes et de Recherches Aérospatiales (ONERA) – France
- Université de Limoges (UNILIM) / XLIM – France
Systems integrators:
- Airbus Defence and Space- Germany
- CMI Defence – Belgium
- Leonardo – Italy
Target vulnerability specialits:
- AERTEC Solutions – Spain
- MBDA France
- QinetiQ Limited – United Kingdom
New security technologies specialists:
- Stelar Security Technology Law Research UG (STELAR) – Germany
End-users relationships experts :
- Nederlandse Organisatie voor Toegepast Natuurwetenschappelik Onderzoek (TNO) – Netherlands
Management of large European collaborative projects experts :
- ERDYN Consultants – France
Some partners have great capabilities on other weapon systems. This will enable the consortium to develop a laser effector complementary to other effectors on the battlefield.
The PADR is part of wider EU initiatives: the European Defence Research Programme (EDRP) and the European Defence Industrial Development Programme (EDIDP) conducted by the European Commission. The objective is twofold: to foster defence strategy autonomy of Europe and to ensure alignment of the defence capabilities of Europe.
Image courtesy CILAS
