The U145 is intended to complement Airbus’ helicopter and uncrewed aerial systems portfolio. Airbus said a maiden flight with a safety pilot on board is planned for the end of 2026, with entry into service expected at the beginning of the next decade.
“With the U145, we are offering our customers an autonomous, uncrewed version of our H145 helicopter – combining the proven airframe, power and useful load of the H145 with the autonomy of a UAS,” said Matthieu Louvot, CEO of Airbus Helicopters. “To develop the U145 and its capabilities as a multi-mission UAS, we will be teaming up with leading autonomous mission partners to further expand the UAS ecosystem in Europe,” he added.
The H145 is the second crewed helicopter Airbus is converting into an uncrewed version. It follows the VSR700, which is derived from the Cabri G2.
The U145 will feature a specialised sensor suite and artificial intelligence for full autonomy. Compared with a crewed H145, it will have no physical cockpit.
Airbus said the aircraft will also include major cargo adaptations. These include an integrated nose door with a foldable loading table and a dedicated cargo floor.
The U145 is being developed with a maximum take-off weight of 3,800 kg. Airbus described it as a mission-agnostic solution for civil and military applications, with high-volume cargo supply as its primary role.
Its modular design is intended to support expansion into additional missions. These include disaster management, firefighting, armed scouting, surveillance, drone mothership operations for air-launched effects and crewed-uncrewed teaming.
Airbus said it is partnering with MBDA on drone mothership functionality for air-launched effects. The company said the U145’s design allows it to support a broad range of future operational concepts.
In the United States, Airbus U.S. Space & Defense is working with Shield AI, L3 Harris and Parry Lab on a dedicated U.S. development for the U.S. Marine Corps. The MQ-72C is described as a fully autonomous variant of the Lakota UH-72B tailored to Marine Corps requirements.
Airbus said more than 1,800 H145 family helicopters are in service worldwide. They are used for military, parapublic and civil missions and have accumulated more than 8.5 million flight hours.
The H145 is powered by two Safran Arriel 2E engines and is equipped with full authority digital engine control. Airbus said the helicopter has the lowest acoustic footprint in its class and the lowest CO2 emissions among its competitors.
