In autumn 2025, Hensoldt completed a successful flight tests campaign using a sub-scale demonstrator of its High Altitude Drop Infiltrating System (HADIS), an unscrewed cargo-carrying glider for the A400 aircraft.

HADIS is an unmanned, autonomous, disposable remote carrier that can be deployed from the rear ramp of a cargo aircraft in flight. While the nature of its payload can and will change in the future, expanding the roles of the platform, HADIS is currently a cargo-delivery solution that can enable low-volume deliveries from stand off ranges exceeding 120 km, allowing an A400 to resupply troops operating deep within a contested area with the presence of enemy air defences.

The system was conceptualized in 2024 as part of a self-financed innovation project and has already been successfully deployed from smaller transport aircraft. The 2025 campaign was supported by the German Armed Forces which provided an A400M.

In its “final” dimensions, HADIS is meant to have an 8 meters wingspan with a disposable fuselage offering a 690 liters volume for cargo of up to 500 kg. With launch from altitudes of 10,600 meters, the glider can cover a distance of 170 km, which reduce to 120 at altitudes of 7,600 meters. Hensoldt anticipates use of a containerized rack-launcher to be sited in the cargo bay of the A400 (or other aircraft) in which the HADIS will be stored point-down, with the wing obviously oriented with the long side into the cargo bay. The container will have 5 bays, each containing an HADIS.

Launch is by extraction with drag-chute. A parachute deploys in the last 100 meters of descent to ensure a safe and point-accurate landing. Gliding at speeds of 210 km an hour, HADIS will cover 120 km in half an hour. Hensoldt now plans to scale up to a full-size demonstrator by the end of 2026.

Hendoldt notes that the cargo glide, consisting of a wing kit and a fuselage and designed as a disposable platform, is intended to safely supply special forces operating deep in enemy territory. The electronics required for control are housed entirely in the wings, while the fuselage serves as a simple, disposable cargo box for the material to be transported.

HADIS is expected to be able to operate in “swarms” and its future potential goes beyond cargo delivery. There is an Airbus proposal to mature the A400 as an airborne launcher of drones/collaborative autonomous platforms and the work with and on HADIS could be part of that effort, which one A400 partner nation (presumably Germany) has already signaled it will support.

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