Euro Hawk surveillance drone panel hears Northrup Grumman and EADS-Cassidian
A parliamentary inquiry committee into the failed Bundeswehr surveillance drone has begun hearing representatives of the companies involved in the Euro Hawk. The tech specialists have argued the money was not wasted.
The parliamentary investigative committee enters its final and decisive phase this week.
On Monday it began questioning representatives of the companies developing the drone: the US defense technology company Northrop Grumman, which produced the body of the unmanned reconnaissance drone, and European aviation firm EADS subsidiary Cassidian, which was developing the surveillance technology.
Both witnesses – Janis Pamiljans, head of Northrop Grumman, and Bernhard Gerwert, chairman of the board of Cassidian – said in advance that they believed the cancellation of the project had been unnecessary. They argued that the drone system functioned flawlessly and safety concerns could have been addressed successfully.
The German government had spent 668 million euros ($822 million) on developing the Euro Hawk drone since 2005, following four years of preparations.
