Business
Officials from the Russian defense firm Kronshtadt Group announced the possible sale of the company’s Orion UAV to a country in the Middle East. But which Middle Eastern country is purchasing the platform, and what capabilities does the system bring to bear? The Orion-E (export version) is Russia’
Military
China’s PLA, or People’s Liberation Army, is actively trying to make advances in military robotics and unmanned systems. It now has a range of unmanned aerial vehicles, or drones, in use across its army, navy, air force and rocket force – the military’s strategic and tactical missiles unit.
Military
Russian Company Kronshtadt Group showcases the Orion-E unmanned aerial vehicle MALE (Medium Altitude Long-Endurance) designed for air reconnaissance at the Army-2018 International Military-Technical Forum. The Orion-E seems very similar to the American-made Predator and could be armed according to our first analysis. According to
Military
AeroVironment, Inc.has announced that its MacCready Works lab has donated automated Quantix hybrid drones, spare parts and AeroVironment’s Decision Support System (AV DSS) analytics software to West Point to support the military academy’s Center for Innovation and Engineering and Geography and Environmental Engineering Department. “MacCready Works is
Business
General Atomics Aeronautical Systems Inc., Poway, California, has been awarded a $123,000,000 firm-fixed-price, cost-plus-fixed-fee contract for the France 3rd/4th Systems MQ-9 Block 5 procurement program. Work will be performed in Poway, California, and is expected to be completed May 1, 2020.
Business
Israel’s Aeronautics, which makes military unmanned aerial vehicles, has rejected a 430 million shekel ($117 million) acquisition offer from state-owned Rafael Advanced Defense Systems and businessman Avihai Stolero. “The company’s board has decided to reject the proposal, among other reasons, because of the amount that was offered,
Military
The United Arab Emirates has deployed at least one of its new Aviation Industry Corporation of China (AVIC) Wing Loong II unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) to its base at Assab airport in Eritrea, satellite imagery has confirmed. A DigitalGlobe image from 3 August shows a UAV with dimensions matching those
Business
General Atomics Aeronautical System Inc., was awarded an $11,096,457 modification (P00120) to contract W58RGZ-13-C-0110 for sub-engineering service memorandums in support of the Gray Eagle aircraft system. Work will be performed in Poway, California, with an estimated completion date of Sept. 30, 2019. Fiscal 2017
Business
Insitu Inc., Bingen, Washington, is awarded a $53,965,378 firm-fixed-price contract to procure four full-rate production, Lot II RQ-21A Blackjack unmanned aircraft systems and eight attrition air vehicles; seven for the Marine Corps and one for the government of Poland. Additionally, this contract award includes
Business
General Atomics Electromagnetic Systems, San Diego, California, is being awarded a competitive cost-plus-award fee contract with a total value of $133,969,081. Under this new contract, the contractor will complete the development, integration, and flight test of an advanced sensor into an MQ-9 unmanned aerial vehicle
Military
President Trump has signed into law H.R. 5515, the John S. McCain National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2019, authorizing the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) to spend $9.6 billion for unmanned vehicle systems. The bill increases military spending for unmanned technologies by 28 percent over
Military
The US Air Force and DARPA are now testing new hardware and software configured to enable 4th and 5th Generation aircraft to command drones from the cockpit in the air, bringing new levels of autonomy, more attack options and a host of new reconnaissance advantages to air warfare. Working with