Military UAVs – Page 24
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NewsUS Navy starts virtual flight training on Boeing MQ-25A unmanned tanker
US Navy unmanned air vehicle operators from the service’s developmental test squadron and operational test squadron recently learned to fly the Boeing MQ-25A Stingray unmanned in-flight refuelling tanker on a desktop-based simulator.
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NewsNorthrop starts production of first Australian MQ-4C Triton
Northrop Grumman has commenced production work on the first MQ-4C unmanned air vehicle (UAV) for the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF). The company marked the production start in a broadcast to a virtual audience that comprised key American and Australian stakeholders in the programme. Assembly of the aircraft kicked off ...
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NewsBAE Systems working on ‘Skyborg’ technology for USAF drone concept
The aerospace manufacturer expects to start working with the USAF in the first quarter of 2021 on system designs for “attritable” unmanned air vehicles.
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NewsBoeing Australia ‘loyal wingman’ conducts first taxi test
Boeing has conducted the first taxi test of the Airpower Teaming System (ATS) loyal wingman aircraft being developed in Australia. Boeing Australia notes that this is the first time the unmanned aircraft has moved under its own power, and reiterated that a maiden sortie is planned by the end of ...
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AnalysisLandmark Taiwan MQ-9 sale would vex Beijing
A reported US plan to sell the General Atomics Aeronautical Systems MQ-9 unmanned air vehicle to Taiwan will complicate Beijing’s incessant prodding of the island’s defences.
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NewsLeonardo validates manned-unmanned teaming solution with Wildcat helicopter
Leonardo Helicopters will over the next 12 months work with the UK Ministry of Defence to develop a roadmap for the teaming of manned and unmanned aircraft, after recently successfully conducting a trial of the concept.
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NewsMQ-9B SeaGuardian commences validation flights in Japan
The General Atomics Aeronautical Systems MQ-9B SeaGuardian has commenced a two-month validation campaign for the Japan Coast Guard.
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News5GAT first flight scheduled for October
The US Department of Defense’s Office of Operational Test and Evaluation plans to test fly its Fifth-Generation Aerial Target prototype for the first time in October at Dugway Proving Ground in Utah.
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NewsThales launches compact AESA radar
Thales has unveiled the AirMaster C, a new version of its active electronically scanned array (AESA) airborne surveillance radar that combines a smaller footprint with several advances in technology.
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NewsAeroVironment and Viasat to aim to improve radio encryption for Puma AE
Up against increasingly sophisticated electronic warfare threats from countries such as Russia and China, drone maker AeroVironment and satellite communications company Viasat are partnering to develop better encrypted radio communications for the Puma AE reconnaissance unmanned air vehicle.
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InterviewHow ‘War on Terror’ UAV maker General Atomics is pivoting to great power conflict
The San Diego-based company has reacted with a flurry of new initiatives in the past couple of years intended to hold onto existing business, seize new opportunities in the near future and ultimately maintain its position as the USA’s leading maker of armed reconnaissance UAVs going into the 2030s.
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NewsGE closes on first flight of Catalyst turboprop engine
GE Aviation is nearing a maiden sortie of its Catalyst turboprop engine, delays to which have had a knock-on impact on Cessna’s in-development Denali.
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NewsUS Army catches ‘air-launched effect’ drones in mid-air using another UAV
The US Army for the first time caught and recovered Area-I Altius “air-launched effects” drones in midair using a quadcopter during Project Convergence exercises in August and September.
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NewsQueensland to be production base for Boeing’s loyal wingman
Boeing has confirmed that the state of Queensland, Australia, will be the production centre for its developmental Airpower Teaming System (ATS) unmanned loyal wingman aircraft. Boeing notes that the ATS is the first Boeing military aircraft to be designed outside the USA. It is also the first military aircraft to ...
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NewsUS Army and USAF to jointly develop battlefield network, called CJADC2
The US Army and the US Air Force signed an agreement to jointly develop a battlefield communications network, called Combined Joint All-Domain Command and Control.
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NewsLoyal wingmen UAVs might be better for non-lethal missions: report
Attritable loyal wingman unmanned air vehicles might be best used as non-lethal “force multipliers” for the US Air Force’s fleet of manned aircraft says a report by think tank Mitchell Institute.
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NewsAeroVironment unveils anti-armour Switchblade 600 loitering munition
After months of public teases, AeroVironment has unveiled its Switchblade 600, a loitering munition with a larger, anti-armour warhead. AeroVironment had previously said such a weapon was under development, but details about its capabilities were lacking. Switchblade 600 is the first in a series of new loitering munitions the unmanned ...
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NewsUSAF doubles MQ-9A’s Hellfire missile payload
The General Atomics Aeronautical Systems MQ-9A Reaper unmanned air vehicle (UAV) has made a sortie with double the number of Lockheed Martin AGM-114 Hellfire air-to-surface missiles, greatly improving its combat persistence. The flight with eight Hellfires took place on 10 September, according to the US Air Force’s (USAF’s) 556th Test ...
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NewsUSAF adds nine companies to Skyborg artificial intelligence development programme
The awards are part of a second phase of the “Skyborg Prototyping, Experimentation and Autonomy Development” programme.
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NewsNorthrop reiterates call for accelerated Australian MQ-4C Triton buy
Northrop Grumman has reiterated its call for Canberra to move its acquisition of the MQ-4C Triton unmanned air vehicle (UAV) forward to help fill a potential two-year production gap. The company notes that the platform has proven effective since the US Navy (USN) deployed a pair of the high-altitude, long-endurance ...