Events
UVS International has just launched its 2011 UAS Photo Competition. It is open to all association members, as well as companies & organizations that are not members, from all countries. Deadline for submission of photos is 15 April 2011. Click below to download the announcement pdf. 2011 UAS Photo Competition
Accidents
An AAI built Shadow UAS flying on a training mission out of Fort Huachuca, Arizona crashed on Monday evening. The aircraft went down 2.5 miles north of Rugge-Hamilton Airfield, near Whetstone and has burned about 2.5 acres. No one was hurt. The cause of the crash was
Testing
A draft report by the US Air Force's 53rd Wing Group at Eglin Air Force Base said that the new system, dubbed Gorgon Stare*, had "significant limitations," and is "not operationally effective" and should therefore not be deployed in the field. The Sierra Nevada
Commercial
A Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Office of Air and Marine Predator B aircraft successfully completed the first long-range unmanned aircraft patrol to utilise the expanded certificate of authorization (COA) that was issued by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) this week-increasing the effectiveness of homeland security unmanned aircraft
Military
ManTech International Corporation, a leading provider of innovative technologies and solutions for mission-critical national security programmes, has announced that the company has been awarded a $57 million contract by the Naval Air Warfare Center Aircraft Division (NAWCAD) to provide engineering, technical and administrative support for naval aircraft (including unmanned
The US Government’s Joint Planning and Development Office (JPDO), set up by the US Congress in 2003 to manage the partnerships designed to bring NextGen online, has a new look and a new Deputy Director, Mike Dudley (ex NASA). Mike’s experience covers a broad spectrum of aeronautics disciplines,
Testing
Xiamen Milestone Group has become the first enterprise in Fujian to design and make a successful trial flight of an unmanned aircraft. The trial flight was carried out on Jan 4th, 2011 and the company plans to market the aircraft in May this year. As a national key high-tech
Military
Finland's Ministry of Defence has narrowed the field in its competition to provide the Finnish army with mini UAS. The shortlist is: DRAC (EADS Cassidian), Spylite (BlueBird) , Skylark (Elbit) , Bird-Eye 650 (IAI) and the Orbiter (Aeronautics Defense Systems). The Finnish army plans to acquire 30-45 Unmanned
Military
Textron Systems, announced yesterday that AAI, an operating unit of the company, will become three separate operating units – AAI Unmanned Aircraft Systems, AAI Test & Training and AAI Logistics & Technical Services – led by Steven Reid, Bob Peters and Diane Giuliani, respectively. Reid, Peters and Giuliani have been promoted to
Electronic Sub-Systems
Tachyon Networks, developer of aXiom end-to-end satellite solutions for fixed, portable and comms-on-the-move (COTM) applications and Hughes Network Systems, LLC (HUGHES) the global leader in broadband satellite networks and services, today announced their intention to cooperate in the development of end-to-end airborne COTM
Military
The US Army is speeding up delivery of some of its newer Unmanned Aircraft System assets such as the Gray Eagle and expanding the size and range of its overall fleet to include a Family of Small UAS and a Vertical-Take-Off-and-Landing UAS. "We're
Military
Elbit Systems Ltd. announced today that its Brazilian subsidiary, Aeroeletrônica Ltda. (AEL), has been awarded a contract to supply Hermes® 450 UAS to the Brazilian Air Force. The project is a part of the Brazilian Air Forces' objective to establish independent UAS capabilities. Joseph Ackerman, President and CEO of