Military
Although large Predator and Reaper drones are the face of modern militaries, drone swarms—dozens of fixed-wing drones flying in coordinated formation— could be the future of unmanned combat. As you'd expect, a drone swarm's advantage relies on the age-old truism of strength in numbers. Where
Business
The British and French governments have signed an agreement to begin a new interim phase of the bilateral Future Combat Air System (FCAS) programme. A 12-month study phase will now begin, which will ultimately lead to a full-scale demonstrator development programme starting at the end of 2017. This £1.5
Military
The Israeli Air Force (IAF) is acquiring more unmanned air vehicles with advanced payloads to satisfy the growing demand for their services. As an immediate step, the existing inventory of Elbit Systems Hermes 900 UAVs will be multiplied by six, the IAF announced on 19 December. “This platform is a
Military
The US Naval Air Systems Command (NAVAIR) has issued a request for information (RFI) for a new long-endurance Group 2 unmanned aircraft system (UAS) for use by the US Marine Corps (USMC). The RFI, posted on the Federal Business Opportunities website on 14 December, is for a 'small'
Military
The Iranian Army’s Ground Forces have unveiled two domestically-designed and -manufactured drones on the final day of major military exercises code-named Mohammad Rasoulallah IV (Mohammad, the Messenger of God IV) in southeastern Iran. One of the two aircraft, code-named Oghab (Eagle), is a combat drone capable of carrying air-to-surface
Military
The development of the unmanned Fazan tailsitter aircraft has begun in Russia, a source in the Russian military-industrial complex said told RIA Novosti. "It is a vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) aircraft, which is able to sit on [a plane's] tail. Its development has already started in
Business
General Atomics - Aeronautical Systems Inc., Poway, California, has been awarded two contracts for MQ-9 work. The first is a $17,143,626 contract (0039) on previously awarded basic ordering agreement FA8620-15-G-4040 for MQ-9 Block 5 Exportability acquisition. Contractor will develop an MQ-9 Block 5 configuration for future foreign military
Weapons Systems / Lasers
The US Air Force is increasing computer simulations and virtual testing for its laser-weapons program to accelerate development and prepare plans to arm fighter jets and other platforms by the early 2020s. To help model the effects of such technologies, the service has awarded Stellar Science a five-year, $7 million
Video
Surveillance above West Africa’s desert. The Heron 1 is now flying in Mali and is delivering important surveillance information to the German Army and its allies. Every beginning is difficult. After a huge effort, the German Air Force is now ready for action. Aufklärung über der Wüste Afrikas – Die
Military
A series of unidentified drones have been reported hovering above armed forces during military exercises in Sweden and Norway. Officials said unmanned aircraft were spotted above Swedish territory on three separate occasions. In June, a remote-controlled craft flew over a Nato training exercise in Sweden, while another flew over an
Testing
General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Inc. has announced the commencement of flight testing for its MQ-1C Gray Eagle Extended Range (ER) series with the successful first flight of the company’s production representative MQ-1C Gray Eagle ER aircraft from its El Mirage Flight Operations Facility in Adelanto, California, on October 29th.
Military
The US Navy announced that next generation aircraft avoidance systems will be installed on its new high-tech maritime surveillance drone. Northrop Grumman has received a $9.6 contract to install the Automatic Response Module of the Airborne Collision Avoidance System X into the MQ-4C Triton’s avionics system. The company