Military
Aerostat blimps and Shadow Unmanned Aircraft Systems configured with Joint Tactical Radio Systems, or JTRS, have been flying above the desert terrain at White Sands Missile Range, N.M, during the Army's Network Integration Evaluation. The Unmanned Aircraft Systems are being used to extend a mobile, ad-hoc line-of-sight
Military
Northrop Grumman Corporation announced that the newest RQ-4 Global Hawk completed the first of many production acceptance flights of an operational Block 30 multi-intelligence sensor package on May 25, flown from Palmdale, California. The Global Hawk flight marks a new era of increased operational intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) capability
Military
The US Navy has awarded North Eastern Aeronautical Company, Inc. (Neany) a $19,998,314 cost-plus-fixed-fee contract for the Persistent Surveillance Unmanned Aerial System (PSUAS). The contract shall integrate with other surveillance systems, produce ground control shelters; and provide training support, theatre support, and persistent surveillance systems testing for the
Military
Lockheed Martin, Mission System & Sensors, Owego, N.Y., was awarded a $47,000,000 cost-plus-fixed-fee contract. The award will provide for procurement of autonomous technologies for unmanned aerial systems to maximize performance requirements and capabilities with mature technologies. Work will be performed in Owego, N.Y., with an estimated
Military
The Navy and Marine Corps plans to field a cargo unmanned aircraft system are moving forward as the first of two potential UAS helicopters landed at Pax River, July 1. The Navy and Marine Corps Multi-Mission Tactical Unmanned Air Systems programme office (PMA-266) coordinated the arrival of Lockheed Martin’s
Military
France and Britain recently announced they would be postponing a decision on a joint development project for next-generation unmanned aerial vehicles for 12-18 months to consider their options. Douglas Barrie, senior fellow for military aerospace at the International Institute for Strategic Studies, discussed European UAS programmes with the editors of
Testing
No country has intensified its research in recent years faster than China - now every major manufacturer for the Chinese military has a research centre devoted to UAS. Much of this work remains secret, but it is clear that China is determined to catch up — by building equivalents to the
Testing
Dassault released photographs of the Neuron UCAV (unmanned combat air vehicle) demonstrator in final assembly at Istres, France, and confirmed that the six-nation collaborative programme is on schedule. All sub-assemblies have been delivered, including the low-observable parts of the structure coming from Dassault’s Argenteuil and Biarritz factories. Thierry Prunier,
Military
The US Navy is one step closer to demonstrating the first carrier-based recoveries and launches of an autonomous, low-observable relevant unmanned aircraft. Aboard USS Dwight D. Eisenhower (CVN-69) July 2, a team from the Navy Unmanned Combat Air System programme office (PMA-268) accomplished the historical first carrier touchdown of an
Military
The U.S. Air Force wants its airborne sensors to do some preliminary analysis work automatically before transmitting that information back to intelligence analysts, a service official said. Currently, the service's analysts who monitor intelligence feeds from unmanned aircraft watch mundane video footage for hours on end without
Military
Chinese Internet pictures reveal a new unmanned aircraft with a diamond-shape wing structure - a joined wing and tail that could considerably increase range and payload and produce better handling at high altitudes. The new Xianglong is equipped with a jet engine mounted on top of the fuselage between the
Business
Federal authorities have warned corporate executives at AeroVironment that they are among about 60 targets suggested by members of an Al Qaeda-connected website forum. In the wake of the warning, AeroVironment and authorities in Monrovia have stepped up security at the company’s corporate headquarters on West Huntington Drive. “The