English: Library Image November 2010:A Royal Air Force Reaper UAV (Unmanned Aerial Vehicle) from 39 Squadron, makes its approach to Kandahar Airfield, Afghanistan following a mission. The aircraft, armed with Paveway bombs and Hellfire missiles, is remotely controlled from Kandahar for takeoff and landing and by British troops in Nevada, USA during the actual sortie.A set of defence co-operation contracts, worth£120 million, for the early phase of a joint development of Unmanned Combat Air System (UCAS) between the UK and French governments have been awarded today in Paris.A UCAS capability would, by the 2030’s, be able to undertake sustained surveillance, mark targets, gather intelligence, deter adversaries and carry out strikes in hostile territory.The contracts will underpin a two-year Future Combat Air System (FCAS) Feasibility Phase programme and will involve six industry partners exploring concepts and options for the potential collaborative acquisition of a UCAS in the future.The contracts award was jointly announced by Bernard Gray, the Ministry of Defence’s Chief of Defence Materiel and his counterpart, Laurent Collet-Billon, head of the French Directorate General of Armaments.