France has conducted a series of experimental trials assessing the feasibility of releasing drones from a military transport aircraft, using an A400M as the test platform.
The campaign, led by the French defense procurement agency, Direction générale de l’armement (DGA), focused on manually releasing inert drone mock-ups from the aircraft.
With inert mock-ups and manual releases shown in the video, the campaign appears focused on experimental validation of modeling, covering separation dynamics, trajectories, and likely aircraft safety margins.
Validating simulations and physical parameters
The tests were carried out jointly by DGA Techniques aérospatiales (DGA TA) and DGA Essais en vol (DGA EV). Representative drone mock-ups, without onboard electronics, were designed and manufactured by DGA TA before being released from an A400M operated by DGA EV.
In total, the campaign involved 72 inert drone mock-ups released over three flights. Of these, 21 were dropped through the paratroop door, while 51 were released via the rear cargo ramp. The different configurations were intended to cover the main categories of drones that could theoretically be deployed from a tactical transport aircraft.
French officials involved in the trials emphasized that such testing is essential to refine numerical models. Multiple physical and mechanical parameters must be understood and controlled, including separation dynamics, aerodynamic behavior in the aircraft’s wake, impact forces, and the structural resilience of the drones themselves.
While the use of manually hand-thrown releases may appear rudimentary, officials stressed that the approach is suited to early-stage experimentation. Initial feedback from the campaign has been described as encouraging. The DGA plans to extend the approach to other platforms, including the Lockheed Martin C-130J Super Hercules and the CASA CN-235, with progressively refined simulations accompanying future flight test campaigns.
France and Airbus’ growing interest in transport-launched effectors
Airbus and the French Air and Space Force are actively repositioning the A400M beyond its original transport role.
At the Paris Air Show 2025, Airbus Head of Military Air Systems Jean-Brice Dumont said operators increasingly view the Atlas as “a data collector,” pointing to the aircraft’s growing value as a sensor and connectivity node as much as an airlifter.
That broader shift includes studies to raise payload margin to around 40 tons, potentially enabling the carriage of dozens of small UAVs or fewer, larger drones, and roll-on/roll-off modular packages for ISR and electronic warfare missions that can be installed quickly to collect, relay, or fuse data across the battlespace.
In parallel, MBDA showcased a “Generic Airdropped Munition Pallet” concept beside a French A400M at Paris, depicting standardized palletized loads combining cruise missiles, Mistral surface-to-air missiles, and loitering munitions. A collaboration between French defense group Thales and Swiss startup Destinus was recently signed, with aims to develop palletized, airdroppable kamikaze drones designed for mass deployment.
Airbus has already used the A400M as a drone launch testbed. After an initial release in February 2022 using a demonstrator derived from the Do-DT25, a more complex Remote Carrier trial followed in December 2022 using a new launch mechanism developed in roughly six months.