THE FIRST TRW/Israel Aircraft Industries (IAI) Hunter joint tactical unmanned air vehicle (JT-UAV) is scheduled to be handed over to the US Army by the end of April. Flight-testing of the Hunter continues in the USA and Israel to avoid further delays in delivering the system.
By the end of March, IAI had completed 27 flights in Israel to test modified flight-control software. US flight-tests, halted last October following four crashes since July 1994, resumed in late February, but were interrupted when an air-vehicle crashed on 8 March (Flight International, 15-21 March, P15).
In the latest accident, ground control of the air-vehicle was lost because of radio interference from another Hunter on the ground. The emergency-landing parachute did not fully open. TRW and IAI say that they are developing more-stringent operational procedures for systems tests to prevent the problem recurring.
Handover of the first system is not expected to be delayed by an independent review of the Hunter programme by US Air Force assistant vice-chief of staff Lt Gen James Fain. The review has recommended that a second low-rate initial-production run should be delayed until the problems are solved.
Fain's review calls for a successful operational-tempo demonstration and first-article test flights, plus engine-reliability improvements and assurances that the system can be supported by operational units. The US General Accounting Office had called for independent testing of the Hunter and had criticised its supportability.
The joint TRW/IAI venture has received a $44 million follow-on contract for continued logistic support of the JT-UAV in 1995. The team is also is developing a heavy-fuel engine for the Hunter. Lockheed Martin and Rotary Power International have a $15 million subcontract to develop an engine running on JP-5/8 fuel to replace the Hunter's gasoline-fuelled piston engines.
TRW/IAI has received a $26 million contract to build 12 "downsized" ground-stations for the Manoeuvre variant of the JT-UAV. The Manoeuvre UAV will use smaller versions of the Hunter ground-control station and datalink terminal with a new air-vehicle, to be selected this year.
Source: Flight International
