Unmanned aircraft, valued for their ability to hunt down the enemy without putting pilots in harm’s way, are being considered for a new mission: marking airdrop zones for resupplying troops in the war zone. Continue reading
Author Archives: The Editor
Insitu Gets $7.8M US Navy Contract for ScanEagle Support Services
Insitu Inc., Bingen, Wash., is being awarded a $7,826,247 modification to a previously awarded firm-fixed-price contract (N00019-11-C-0061) to exercise an option for operational and maintenance services in support of the ScanEagle unmanned aircraft systems. Continue reading
Northrop Grumman Markets MQ-8C as ‘Rotary Wing UAS of the Future’
A full scale mock-up of Northrop Grumman’s MQ-8C, the unmanned platform that is to succeed the MQ-8B, was on show earlier this month at the Navy League’s Sea-Air-Space exposition at National Harbor, Md. Continue reading
Successful US Navy Funded, ADS-B based, Autonomous, Sense & Avoid with Pilot Override Demonstrated
R³ Engineering LLC has announced successful demonstration of autonomous collision avoidance during flight tests that took place the week of April 15th-19th at Yuma Proving Ground (YPG) in Arizona. Continue reading
Boeing’s X-48C Blended Wing Body Demonstrator Completes Flight Tests – Video
The Boeing X-48C research aircraft flew for the 30th and final time April 9, 2013, marking the successful completion of an eight-month flight-test programme to explore and further validate the aerodynamic characteristics of the Blended Wing Body design concept. Continue reading
Eurocopter’s Successful OPV Flights
Eurocopter’s ability to integrate unmanned flight capabilities into its helicopter family has been validated by an optionally piloted vehicle (OPV) demonstration programme, which used an EC145 to fly routes that included deployment of an external sling load and a representative observation mission. Continue reading
Boston Police Chief Considers UAS for Next Marathon
Boston Police Commissioner Edward F. Davis is pushing for a city-run system of eye-level street surveillance technology and making a case for a dedicated NYPD-style anti-terrorism unit to protect Boston from another soft-target strike like the deadly marathon bombing. Continue reading
US Navy Tests Puma and Aerostat to Detect Drug Smugglers
Drug smugglers who race across the Caribbean in speedboats will typically jettison their cargo when spotted by surveillance aircraft, hoping any chance of prosecuting them will vanish with the drugs sinking to the bottom of the sea. Continue reading