Scheduled to fly in mid 2025, Leonardo has unveiled an updated design of its Proteus rotary wing uncrewed aerial system demonstrator for the UK Ministry of Defence.
Proteus is the culmination of a £60 million contract awarded in 2022 to Leonardo by the UK Ministry of Defence’s Defence Equipment and Support (DE&S) Future Capability Group. The primary end user in consideration is the Royal Navy, who are seeking an advanced rotary wing uncrewed aerial system (RWUAS) as part of its Future Maritime Aviation Force concept.
This RWUAS will work alongside a future force of fixed wing UAS from ships and land bases to support Royal Navy operations across the globe. A rotary wing design would offer the increased flexibility of allowing deployment from escort ships, rather than being limited to use from the Queen Elizabeth class aircraft carriers.
Proteus’ Design
Reporting from FlightGlobal indicates that the Proteus airframe will be derived from that of the Leonardo AW09 helicopter. The AW09 is a light, civilian helicopter design originating from Swiss designer Kopter. The Kopter SH09 was adopted and rebranded by Leonardo after the defense giant acquired Kopter in 2020.
On a purely aesthetic note, there is also a degree of similarity to the Westland Lynx/AgustaWestland Wildcat design, now produced by Leonardo. The renderings of Proteus show it sharing an almost identical two-tone gray camouflage scheme to the Royal Navy’s current Wildcat HMA2s.
Key differences compared to earlier renderings include the replacement of the traditional tail rotor with a Fenestron, which improves safety for those working in close proximity to the aircraft. The enclosed Fenestron design dates back to French manufacturer Sud Aviation, who used it on their popular Gazelle helicopter. Sud Aviation merged into Aérospatiale, which then merged into Airbus.
We are also able to see further details of the Proteus’ reconfigurable payload bay section that appears to comprise a large section of the main fuselage body. Leonardo says this “plug and play” replaceable section would be able to house mission equipment or extra fuel. In the rendering, it appears to be configured for the carriage of sonobuoys, which are used extensively in anti-submarine warfare (ASW).
Other payload bay configurations could include a logistics module, offering the ability to use an uncrewed aircraft for resupply missions ferrying cargo from ship to shore or vice versa, a radar module for the Airborne Surveillance and Control (ASaC) mission, or even a weapons module with hardpoints for light torpedoes and missiles. A light helicopter design, like Proteus, would not be the best performing option for any of these roles, but critically it would offer deployable mass to aid a stretched manned helicopter fleet. It also removes the need to place human operators in the riskiest of operational situations, if possible.
An interesting modular model was displayed at last year’s @DefenceIQ International Military Helicopter conference… pic.twitter.com/pZM0q6sw6v
— Gareth Jennings (@GarethJennings3) January 7, 2025
The choice of skids over a wheeled landing gear eschews the traditional preference of the Royal Navy in recent years, as wheeled landing gears make it easier for aircraft handlers to maneuver the helicopter on the flight deck. When landing on small flight decks at sea, naval helicopters often lock themselves to the ship by using a hydraulic arm to clamp onto a metal grid embedded in the flight deck. Some ships are equipped to then use a system of rails built into the deck to move the aircraft to and from the hangar area. Skid-equipped helicopters have been fitted with these ‘harpoons’ but without wheels it could then prove difficult to move the aircraft around, especially as RWUAS designs get larger.
Notably, the U.S. Marine Corps operate extensively at sea using helicopters with skids, namely the AH-1Z Viper and UH-1Y Venom. To facilitate their movement around ships and on the ground specialist hydraulic ground handling wheels are attached to the skids, then raising the helicopter up and allowing it to be pushed. A form of these would likely be a necessary buy for the Royal Navy should Proteus evolve into an operational platform.
Advanced Design Processes
At Leonardo’s UK helicopter plant in Yeovil, work on Proteus is, according to the company, taking advantage of the very latest digital design and manufacturing techniques. Additive layer manufacturing, commonly referred to as 3D printing, allows for rapid prototyping at a far lower financial and labor cost.
Additive manufacturing has been embraced by many parts of the British armed forces. Large Cold Metal 3D Printing machines were trialed by the British Army during Exercise Steadfast Defender to produce engine components for vehicles. More small-scale plastic printers, like those available to consumers, have been rolled out at unit level and used to produce certain components and prototypes in house, reducing costs and simplifying procurement.
700X Naval Air Squadron (NAS), the Royal Navy’s specialist UAS unit, have extensively used a 3D printing facility at RNAS Culdrose, allowing rapid development of ideas that are formed by the squadron’s own personnel. During the COVID-19 pandemic, these machines were additionally used by Royal Navy personnel on a volunteer basis to produce personal protective equipment which was donated to end users in the surrounding area.
Operational use of hand-launched Unmanned Air Systems is a rapidly developing area for @RoyalNavy. PO Thorburn, used 3D printers at the @RNASCuldrose Creatorspace to modify a mini UAS for easier hand launching & recovery from moving platforms. Formal air safety trials are next pic.twitter.com/wJw3yhu4pP
— RNAS Culdrose (@RNASCuldrose) February 21, 2018
Meanwhile, in a move similar to the Excalibur GCAP testbed, Leonardo will utilize a digital twin of the Proteus airframe which can facilitate development work, using artificial intelligence and machine learning algorithms, without requiring as many hours of actual flight testing. The synthetic and reprogrammable nature of the process also allows for the testing of modifications almost instantly without needing to factor in the time and effort spent fabricating and then fitting each modification in turn to the real aircraft.
Other Rotary Wing UAS Designs
The most well-known example of an operational RWUAS is the U.S. Navy’s MQ-8 Fire Scout. The initial RQ-8A and MQ-8B aircraft were based on the Schweizer 330 civilian helicopter, first flying in 2000 but not deploying on a U.S. Navy ship until 2009. The MQ-8B saw operational deployments to Afghanistan and Libya. One example was claimed to have been shot down during the Libyan Civil War.
Retiring from service in 2022, the MQ-8B was replaced by the larger Bell 407-derived MQ-8C fire scout. The MQ-8C attained its initial operating capability in 2019, and since then has primarily been involved in operational evaluation missions testing the different functions a RWUAS can provide. The MQ-8C is scheduled to be retired by 2026, a sign of how quickly developments in this area are proceeding.
In the Royal Navy, 700X NAS have already deployed the small Peregrine RWUAS on board Royal Navy ships. The Peregrine is based on the Schiebel Camcopter S-100 and can be used for intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) duties. Having already seen extensive service with civilian and military operators, Peregrine’s entry into (trial) service has been relatively quick, with confidence in the platform signified by its test deployment having been conducted on HMS Lancaster in the Gulf of Oman. HMS Lancaster, a Type 23 frigate, is currently the Royal Navy’s primary surface combatant permanently deployed to the Middle East.
Numerous types of commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) platforms, such as DJI quadcopters, as well as unique one-off developmental designs, are also regularly utilized by 700X NAS.
The #RoyalNavy’s drone squadron #700XNAS have taken their expertise in uncrewed systems one step further by building their own quadcopter. It is a milestone moment for the @RNASCuldrose-based team.
🔗https://t.co/8D1uVEma7K pic.twitter.com/2nW7fpbInw
— Royal Navy (@RoyalNavy) December 28, 2022
An armed RWUAS capability has been trialed with Jackal, a design by Flyby Technology. The interesting looking design was modified to carry firing tubes for the Martlet missile, and conducted successful live firings during RAF tests.
Leonardo itself hopes to enter the lightweight RWUAS market with AWHERO. A 200 kg class platform, the AWHERO follows a similar configurable payload philosophy to Proteus, allowing sensors and communications technology to be swapped out without extensive modification.
Capabilities proposed by Leonardo include intelligence, surveillance, target acquisition, and reconnaissance (ISTAR) modules with an electro-optical/infrared (EO/IR) camera, a lightweight maritime radar, or a Light Imaging Detection and Ranging (LiDAR) scanner, as well as electronic support measures (ESM) equipment and a datalink communications relay for deployed sonobuoys. The AWHERO, then, would be able to act as an additional force multiplication layer, supporting Proteus aircraft, which in turn can support crewed aircraft and ships.
