Northrop Grumman has contracted Thinklogical for key infrastructure systems for the U.S. Navy’s Broad Area Maritime Surveillance Unmanned Aircraft System.
Alenia Delivers nEUROn Weapon Bay Doors to Dassault
Alenia Aeronautica, has announced that it has recently delivered the Weapon Bay Doors & Mechanism for nEUROn (the new-generation technology demonstrator for a European Unmanned Combat Aerial Vehicle – UCAV) to Dassault Aviation.
Xtreme Power Systems Selects RFaxis for New Atmel-Based Diversity Antenna DivBee(TM) Module to Serve ZigBee/ISM Applications
RFaxis has announced that its RFX2401 single chip/single die RF Front-End Integrated Circuit (RFeIC(TM)) for ZigBee/ISM 2.4GHz has been selected by Xtreme Power Systems (XPS) for its new DivBee(TM) Diversity Antenna ZigBee module.
Lockheed Martin Sentinel Used in Bin Laden Operation
The CIA employed unmanned aircraft to fly dozens of secret missions deep into Pakistani airspace and monitor the compound where Osama bin Laden was killed, current and former U.S. officials said.
Chile Chooses Elbit’s Hermes 900
Elbit Systems has been selected to supply its Hermes 900 unmanned aircraft system to the Chilean defence forces.
Skyblade UAS on Show in Singapore
Skyblade IV, an unmanned aircraft developed by home-grown firm ST Aerospace and DSO National Laboratories, the national defence research body, was on show at the region’s largest naval exhibition, Imdex Asia, which opened in Singapore on Wednesday.
Israeli Air Force Seeks Unmanned Training System
The Israeli air force has issued a tender to select an unmanned aircraft system for training purposes.
AME Unmanned Systems to Cut 20% of Workforce
After years of explosive growth, AME Unmanned Systems is cutting about 20 percent of its workforce in response to cuts in the U.S. defence budget and changes in its contracts.
Founded in 1999 by two Cal Poly graduates in a garage and on a shoestring budget, AeroMech grew to employ about 100 people and occupy about 78,000 square feet of space on Venture Drive. The firm makes unmanned aerial systems that range from hand-launched planes to its flagship Fury 1500, which has a 14.3-foot wingspan.
In 2009, Alabama defense contractor ChandlerMay acquired a controlling stake in AeroMech. In April, the parent firm installed a new CEO and changed AeroMech’s name to AME Unmanned Air Systems.A ChandlerMay spokesman confirmed that the company has “executed a restructuring to account for some contract changes with the U.S. government” but declined to say how large the employee cutbacks would be.
But a person familiar with the company told the Business Times that the layoffs will affect about 20 percent of AeroMech’s workforce, cutting the headcount from 100 to roughly 80. This person also said the affected employees would be eligible for rehiring if the firm wins new contracts.
Source: Pacific Coast Business Times