Weapons Systems / Lasers
* General Atomics is leveraging its experiences in hypersonic, railgun, and drone development in its new Long-Range Maneuvering Projectile (LRMP), a precision artillery round with wings that the company claims could hit moving targets 120 kilometers away in GPS-denied environments. The entirely self-funded project has been in the
Military
The unmanned aerial system (UAS) SKAT 350M, developed by Izhevsk Aviation Plant LLC (IAZ)—a subsidiary of the Kalashnikov Group—has been officially entered into the register of products manufactured in the Russian Federation. This major step, achieved under Government Resolution No. 719 of July 17, 2015, allows the SKAT
Czech company PBS Group, in collaboration with Ukrainian firm Ivchenko Progress, has developed the AL-PBS-350, a powerful jet engine designed specifically for unmanned aerial vehicles. In cooperation with the Ukrainian company Ivchenko Progress, PBS jointly developed a new type of powerful jet engine AI-PBS-350 for unmanned
C-UAS
In an antidrone technology competition earlier this year, Boeing showcased a futuristic laser weapon that can punch a hole straight through a hostile aerial threat. The multinational—and several other defense giants—lost to four college students who knocked drones out of the sky using sound waves. The rookies’ device
Video
According to an interview with RAF pilot Bud Abbott, it was: “A flying abortion.” The Fairy Barracuda was freakishly constructed with high wings, a T-tail, and L-shaped landing gear. It was underpowered and impossible to see out of. Yet here it was, about to take on the mightiest
Since it was formed, the Northern Plains UAS Test Site (NPUASTS) has been a critical partner in Project ULTRA, a multi-entity collaboration that is bolstering the Department of Defense’s (DoD) capabilities within the National Airspace System (NAS).Just months after the public announcement, the NPUASTS has surpassed significant
Military
Russian forces in Ukraine have started using drones that have received the PFM-1 anti-personnel mine dropping system. A photo of such a Russian drone was shown by radio technology specialist Serhiy Flesh. The DJI Mavic 3 drone was equipped with the anti-personnel mine drop system, which is
In order to reduce the labour required for agricultural work and to combat high summer temperatures, JA Zennoh Aomori (National Federation of Agricultural Cooperative Associations) is testing the use of drones to spray a shading agent on agricultural greenhouses. The team will investigate the effects of high temperatures on the
Expanding its pioneering Drone as First Responder (DFR) program, Campbell Police Department (CPD) is the first in California, using optical and radar sensors, to incorporate radar in a Part 91.113(b) waiver request to conduct single-person operations, which requires only one operator for flight operations. Adding radar also
Propulsion
* X-Bow Systems Inc., a non-traditional supplier of advanced manufactured solid rocket motors (SRMs) and defense technologies, has announced the successful third flight of its Bolt Rocket. The XB-32 motor, part of X-Bow’s Bolt rocket family, is the largest Advanced Manufactured Solid Propellant (AMSP) motor ever
Data Links & Communications
* Silvus Technologies, Inc., a global supplier of advanced wireless networking communication systems, has announced its next-generation MANET radio OEM module: the StreamCaster LITE 5200 (SL5200). Designed for leading-edge unmanned systems, the SL5200 unifies C2, sensor, and telemetry data with communications relay capabilities in an ultra-low SWaP (52g)
* Sikorsky, a Lockheed Martin company, has received a $6 million award from the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) to install the company’s ALIAS/MATRIX flight autonomy system onto the U.S. Army’s experimental fly-by-wire UH-60M Black Hawk helicopter. Designated MX, the upgraded aircraft will