Category Archives: Applications & Testing & Experience

First Flight for Drone-sized Electric Aircraft

Case Western Reserve University professor of mechanical and aerospace engineering Vikas Prakash—along with state government and private partners—launched an otherwise unremarkable, single-propeller fiberglass airplane into the skies at Springfield-Beckley Municipal Airport and waited to see how long it could fly before running out of juice. Continue reading

XQ-58A Valkyrie Demonstrator Completes First Flight

The XQ-58A Valkyrie demonstrator, a long-range, high subsonic unmanned air vehicle completed its inaugural flight March 5, 2019 at Yuma Proving Grounds, Arizona

The XQ-58A Valkyrie demonstrator, a long-range, high subsonic unmanned air vehicle completed its inaugural flight March 5, 2019 at Yuma Proving Grounds, Arizona. The Air Force Research Laboratory partnered with Kratos Unmanned Aerial Systems to develop the XQ-58A. Continue reading

US Navy to Test Electronic Warfare Drones this Fall

The Dash X is a foldable Class II UAV – manufactured by VX Aerospace – that can loiter on targets for over 10 hours and carry electronic warfare payloads. (VX Aerospace)

Complex electronic warfare (EW) platforms – such as the U.S. Navy’s EA-18G Growler – could soon release swarms of drones from the aircraft, allowing the smaller vehicles to fly ahead to scout out for radar and other battlefield emitters, and potentially even take part in electronic attack missions themselves by jamming enemy sensor networks.

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GA-ASI and Raytheon Prove New Digital Sensors

General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Inc. (GA-ASI) and Raytheon Deutschland GmbH based in Freising, Germany, have successfully proven the performance of a recently developed Electronic Intelligence (ELINT) sensor called the Advanced Radar Detection System (ARDS).  The payload was integrated in a wing-mounted pod and test-flown on an MQ-9 RPAS. Continue reading

Planck Aero Test Flights from Moving Ground Vehicles

Planck Aerosystems key leaders land a Shearwater drone on a moving truck to test its capabilities during night time operations on East MCAS Miramar, Calif., Jan. 24. 2019

Planck Aerosystems (Planck Aero) recently received authorization from Marine Corps Air Station (MCAS) Miramar, Air Traffic Control (ATC) to test the Shearwater sUAS in controlled airspace and at night. Continue reading