How do you define the verb "to mature"? It may seem trivial, but it is anything but an academic question for Northrop Grumman and Raytheon.

The two US contractors are locked in a legal feud that centres on the degree to which Raytheon can modify the 3m (10ft)-wingspan KillerBee-4 (KB-4) unmanned aircraft system.

The behind-the-scenes sparring spilled over into public view during separate interviews with both companies on 15 June at the Paris air show.

Raytheon executive Mark Bigham says Northrop's narrow interpretation of the "to mature" terminology puts them "on very thin ice" legally.

But Northrop makes no apologies for the way it interprets a data rights agreement for the KB-4 signed with Raytheon in early May.

"We'll defend our market space," says Gene Fraser, Northrop's vice-president and deputy for strike and surveillance systems.

The dispute began in May when Northrop acquired the rights to the Swift Engineering-designed KillerBee family of vehicles, which Northrop has renamed Bat.

That acquisition seemed to put Raytheon in an awkward position. Raytheon had partnered Swift in 2007 to offer the KB-4 UAS for the pending US Navy/US Marine Corps small tactical UAS/Tier II contract.

However, Bigham says that Raytheon acquired "exclusive" data rights from Northrop to offer the KB-4 for STUAS/Tier II, as well as "to mature" the aircraft.

According to Bigham, the maturity clause gives Raytheon the right to scale up or scale down the aircraft in any way it sees fit. Raytheon has even considered scaled-up versions of the KB-4 for the US Air Force MQ-X contract, which is expected to be an RQ-1 Predator replacement.

Northrop has also looked at a scaled-up version of its Bat airframe with an 11m wingspan to offer as an MQ-X candidate, among other concept designs.

Fraser says that Northrop tightly defines Raytheon's right to mature the KB-4 airframe. Northrop's interpretation would not allow Raytheon to scale up or scale down the KB-4's 3m wingspan, he says.

"It depends on how you want to define maturing," Fraser says.

For now, the dispute is a matter of discussions between both companies. Whether it may escalate into a court battle is still unknown, but Fraser notes that there are mitigating factors.

The most important of those is the fact that Northrop and Raytheon collaborate on many products, even as the compete heavily on others. That experience has helped them navigate through disagreements in the past.

"We'll figure out a way to work together," Fraser says.

Source: Flight Daily News

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