A China-made large amphibious UAV – “U650” – successfully conducted its maiden flight in the heavy fog and strong crosswinds above the waters in east China’s Jiangsu province in early December. The test flight lasted for 30 minutes. Continue reading
Category Archives: Applications & Testing & Experience
EDA Project to Reduce Vulnerability of Lightweight UAV Structures
The BaToLUS project, Battle Damage Tolerance for Lightweight Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) Structures, brought about a successful development of new rapid prototype modelling capabilities. Continue reading
Lockheed Martin Conducts Collaborative Unmanned Systems Demonstration
Lockheed Martin demonstrated its ability to integrate unmanned aircraft system (UAS) operations into the National Airspace System (NAS) using its prototype UAS Traffic Management (UTM) capabilities. During the demonstration on Nov. 18, the Stalker XE UAS provided data and a precise geolocation to the unmanned K-MAX cargo helicopter, which conducted water drops to extinguish a fire, while the UTM tracked the UAS operations and communicated with Air Traffic Control in real time. Continue reading
MQ-8C Fire Scout Concludes Operational Assessment
The U.S. Navy and Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC) completed a successful land-based operational assessment (OA) with the unmanned, autonomous helicopter MQ-8C Fire Scout, at Naval Base Ventura County, Point Mugu, Nov. 20. The OA demonstrated the endurance and sensor integration capabilities on the new MQ-8C airframe.
Flexrotor Finds Fish on US Coast Guard Trial
“We panned the camera out over the Chesapeake, and there they were, four-and-a-half kilometers away” recalls Aerovel’s Tad McGeer. “It was our first day of demonstrating Flexrotor for the US Coast Guard.” Flexrotor, Aerovel’s exceptional unmanned aircraft, has caught the Coast Guard’s attention with its unique combination of small size, light footprint, VTOL, long endurance, and economy. “They asked us to come to the Potomac so they could see it for themselves.” Continue reading
Triton Begins Operational Assessment
The MQ-4C Triton unmanned aircraft system began one of the events that will be used to support the program’s Milestone C review and entry into low-rate initial production Nov. 17 at NAS Patuxent River. Continue reading
US Army Agencies Partner to Counter Drone Threat
Two Army organizations that have been teaming up to provide warfighters with innovations downrange are now looking to prevent a threat from the proliferation of small unmanned aerial systems.
US Army Tests UAS That Flies Like a Bird
The Army Research Lab, or ARL, is testing UAVs that might sport wings that flap like a bird or a butterfly at the Spesutie Island Robotics Research Facility on Chesapeake Bay. Continue reading