VTOL
Officials from Chinese company Ziyan revealed at the Africa Aerospace and Defence (AAD) 2018 exhibition in South Africa on 19–23 September that the Blowfish I vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) has entered service with the People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN). The Zhuhai-based UAV manufacturer,
Military
Serbian Deputy Defence Minister Nenad Miloradovic on 17 September confirmed that Serbia will buy unmanned combat aerial vehicles (UCAVs) from China. Miloradovic made his statement, broadcast by the Tanjug state news agency, in Beijing a day after several Belgrade media reported that Serbia would acquire six unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs)
Military
The US Air Force (USAF) scored the first air-to-air kill for the General Atomics Aeronautical Systems Inc (GA-ASI) MQ-9 Reaper unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) during trials late last year, the service disclosed on 19 September. The disclosure by a senior officer speaking at the Air Force Association Space and Cyber
Business
Northrop Grumman Systems Corp., Linthicum Heights, Maryland, is awarded $64,800,000 for firm-fixed-price delivery order N0001918F2470 against a previously issued basic ordering agreement (N00019-15-G-0026). This delivery order provides for the low rate initial production 3 initial spares operational requirement to support organizational level maintenance for the MQ-4C Triton Unmanned
Military
MBDA in the United Kingdom has unveiled a new combat unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) concept designed to provide on-call, low-cost organic precision effects close air support for forward-deployed land forces. Spectre is a tilt wing, electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) combat air system concept capable of quickly transitioning to
Military
At the Air Force Association’s annual Air, Space and Cyber Conference, Insitu leadership announced Integrator Extended Range, a beyond line of sight, SATCOM-enabled small UAS capable of ranging modern combat theaters. The system delivers Group 4 and 5 capabilities in a Group 3 aircraft including: * Extended range operations of
Military
A modified version of Northrop Grumman’s MQ-8C Fire Scout unmanned helicopter has successfully completed an automated sea mine-hunting demonstration. The work saw the rotorcraft coordinate with a small robotic surface ship and unmanned submersible at the US Navy’s Advanced Naval Technology (ANTX) exercise from 29-31 August, according to
Business
Aerovironment Inc., Monrovia, California, was awarded an $8,868,341 firm-fixed-price contract for providing RQ-20B Puma AE II systems and support to Estonia. One bid was solicited with one bid received. Work will be performed in Monrovia, California, with an estimated completion date of March 24, 2019. Fiscal 2018 operations
Military
On August 7, the U.S. Air Force (USAF) completed the first-ever automated landing of an MQ-9 Block 5 Remotely Piloted Aircraft (RPA), followed by the first auto-takeoff on August 9. The new Automatic Takeoff and Landing Capability (ATLC) was developed by General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Inc. (GA-ASI) to enhance
Military
AeroVironment, Inc. has announced the receipt of a fixed-price contract award valued at $5,962,494 from NSPA on August 20, 2018.The contract award encompasses the procurement of Raven® unmanned aircraft systems equipped with Mantis i23 sensors and pocket Remote Video Terminals (p/RVT) for the Portuguese Army, with
Accidents
A Hellenic Army unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) fell near Komotini, northern Greece, last Thursday morning.The SAGEM Sperwer type aircraft fell some four kilometers west of Komotini, according to local reports. The aircraft had been on a training exercise when it crashed five minutes after takeoff, sources said. Initial assessments
Accidents
A MQ-4C Triton landed on its belly after a test flight last Wednesday went wrong at Naval Base Ventura County in California. The incident occurred at 2:45 pm Wednesday at Point Mugu when the aircraft from Florida-based Naval Air Station Jacksonville’s Unmanned Patrol Squadron 19 experienced an unspecified