The industry RFP for cats and traps was put out some time ago but it specified weights sufficient for a fairly big UAV (and coincidentally a Rafale) but too low for F35-C or F/A-18E so I was very surprised to see those specifically mentioned.
Personally I think we will see some sort of assisted launch and recovery system fitted for higher performance UAVs but where it will sit along the spectrum from a really strong bit of elastic to EMALS/AAG, I wouldn't like to guess.
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Queen Elizabeths - Sandy Sinclair June 1, 2023, 18:57:32
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