ALLIANT SYSTEMS has beaten eight other competitors to the contract to produce the Pentagon's Tactical Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (TUAV).
The UAV Joint Project Office on 2 May awarded prime contractor Alliant Techsystems a $52.6 million contract to provide TUAV systems for a two-year advanced concept-technology demonstration.
Six TUAV systems, with four air vehicles and sensors per system and eight attrition vehicles, will be built and flight tested.
A contract option calls for low-rate initial production of the same number of systems and air vehicles. With the options, the total value rises to more than $87 million, says Alliant Techsystems.
The TUAV will carry electro-optical and infra-red imagery sensors. The UAV JPO wants TUAV to fly 200km (110nm) and stay on station for at least 3h. It has set a target cost of $300,000 per sensor-equipped air vehicle.
Source: Flight International
