Novadem to deliver about 50 more micro-drones NX70 to the French Army.

Novadem received a new order from the DGA, to reinforce its fleet of micro-drones NX70 already used by French soldiers. Since 2018, the number of NX70 owned by the French Ministry of Army has continuously increased to reach more than 150 NOVADEM drones ordered today.

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Thanks to the feedback from the soldiers on the field, Novadem has worked and equipped its drones with a thermal camera with a double resolution than the current one (Picture source: Novadem)

The company from Aix-en-Provence, NOVADEM, received at the end of 2020, from the France’s Defence Procurement Agency (DGA) a new order for about fifty more micro-drones NX70. This is the third order in two years and proves, once again, the mutual confidence between the French Ministry of Army and NOVADEM. Since the initial order in 2018, the fleet of drones NX70 used on external operations (OPEX) has never stopped growing every year. To date, there are about 150 NX70 drones and more than 200 associated equipment and spare parts acquired, for a total order amount of more than six million euros.

This new order also demonstrates an evolution for NX70 night vision capabilities. In fact, thanks to the experience feedback from the soldiers on the field, Novadem has worked and equipped its drones with a thermal camera with a double resolution than the current one. This night performance is unrivalled by any system of this range. Half of the NX70 drones will be delivered with this new high-resolution thermal camera, named 640, for the purpose of the most demanding night missions driven by units specialised in observation and research. This is added to the existing versatility of the NX70 fleet, which is already equipped with tethered power supply for continuous observation and protection missions, and also data link terminal placed on vehicles or directly handled by soldiers allowing information sharing on the field.

The delivery will occur on the first half of the year, with the first units planned to be received by the DGA in April 2021. Then, after six months of work achieved by Novadem assembly teams in Aix-en -Provence, the rest of the systems, equipment and spare parts will close the delivery by the beginning of the summer.

Since 2016, the NX70 has evolved over the years and from RETEX users to arrive in its latest version, NX70 "Block 2". A 1kg micro-drone, the NX70 has a flight range of up to 45 minutes and a range of up to 5 kilometers. The NX70 can fly in difficult weather conditions (wind up to 65 km/h, rain, dust, higher temperature range) ensuring a high availability rate. Its data links are encrypted and specific to military needs; no information is stored onboard the drone and no internet connection is required to operate the equipment, thus limiting any risk of compromise. Beyond its day and night detection and recognition capabilities, the NX70 can be equipped with extended capabilities allowing it, for example, to perform observation missions lasting several hours thanks to its power supply device from the ground via a cable or to carry additional releasable devices such as a medical kit, smoke detector, etc. Its hardened steering interface is compatible with formats for maps and coordinates in the defense sector.

From 00:23 to 03:17,  French Company Novadem presents its NX70 micro surveillance and reconnaissance UAV during Paris Air Show 2019