Military
The Navy’s MQ-8B Fire Scout vertical-takeoff/ vertical-landing unmanned aerial vehicle (VTUAV) has deployed for the first time in the Southwest Asia region, where the helicopter is being tested in the challenging environments of the Arabian Sea and Afghanistan. A detachment with two MQ-8Bs is deployed aboard the Perry-class guided-missile
Testing
Despite a dismal initial operational test and evaluation (IOT&E) report about the Northrop Grumman RQ-4 Global Hawk Block 30, the US Air Force reports a relatively high operational reliability rating. The USAF reports that Block 30 Global Hawks, operating from four bases for five combatant commands, are operating
Military
The US Army has released an RFI "to support the Army development of the MRMP acquisition strategy and to inform the collaborative Army and Navy Medium Range Maritime UAS (MRMUAS) Analysis of Alternatives (AoA)." MRMUAS is the Navy's planned follow-on to the MQ-8 Fire Scout VTOL
Military
Exhibiting for the first time at the Paris Air Show, UVision, a small company from Israel, specializing in special purpose UAS, showed its WASP - a personal, mini UAS that has performance characteristics of a missile, with the versatility, user control and reusability of a UAS. UVision has built the
Military
The U.S. Army is participating in a U.S. Navy analysis of alternatives (AOA) to determine whether both services’ requirements for vertical-takeoff-and-landing (VTOL) unmanned aircraft can be met by a joint programme. The Army has provided an addendum to the Navy-led study “to see if the need is for
Military
The US Army expects to issue a "request for information" imminently for a vertical-takeoff and landing (VTOL) unmanned aircraft, Army officials said recently.As an interim step before it decides to buy a new aircraft, the Army is experimenting with A-160 Hummingbirds, 35-feet long unmanned helicopters that can
Control Stations
Air Force officials have released the criteria for basing of the regular Air Force MQ-1/9 remote split operations ground control stations. The basing criteria, announced on June 22, were approved by the secretary and chief of staff of the Air Force and include factors such as mission requirements, training
Military
Northrop Grumman is pitching its MQ-4C Broad Area Maritime Surveillance (BAMS) unmanned aircraft system to the Indian navy. Earlier this year the company responded to an Indian request for information for a high-altitude, long-endurance UAS issued in October 2010, said an industry source. In US Navy service BAMS is planned
Military
A decade-long investment in the unmanned, long-endurance A160 Hummingbird helicopter is set to enter a final proving phase at the end of the month. Boeing plans to deliver the first of 20 new production aircraft assembled in Mesa, Arizona by the end of June to a flight-test facility in Victorville,
Military
Iran has shown Russia, American UAS that it shot down over the Gulf, Revolutionary Guards aerospace commander Brigadier General Amir Ali Hadjizadeh was quoted as saying on Tuesday. "Russian experts requested to see these drones and they looked at both the downed UAS and the models made by the
Military
African peacekeepers fighting al-Qaida’s allies in Somalia are about to get their first UAS, courtesy of the Pentagon. Under a proposed $45 million counter-terrorism package, Uganda and Burundi, two major contributors to the African Union peacekeeping force in Somalia will get four small unarmed Raven UAS. But neither the
Testing
Northrop Grumman and Cassidian have confirmed that the Euro Hawk test-bed, the German version of the RQ-4 Global Hawk, will fly to Germany for payload integration and testing. The aircraft will be ferried to Germany as soon as July 2011, said Northrop Grumman. The test aircraft, a modified Block 20