US Navy-sponsored sea trials of Bombardier Services' co-axial rotor CL-327 Guardian vertical take-off and landing unmanned air vehicle (VTOL UAV) have been delayed by at least a month because of technical problems, say USN project officials.
The decision to postpone the shipborne flight operations coincides with Bombardier Services' withdrawal from the race to win a multi-million dollar Navy VTOL UAV procurement contest. (Flight International, 22-28 September). At issue was the CL-327 UAV's readiness to conduct sea trials from a US Coast Guard cutter, beginning on 22 September. A key problem involves delay in data transfer between the UAV and the Sierra Research Common Automated Recovery System.
According to officials, the CL-327 shipborne demonstration will be useful, despite Bombardier's exit from the VTOL UAV contest.
"We will learn a lot from a technology standpoint, which is going to help us as we head into preliminary and critical design of a production VTOL UAV system," say the officials.
• One of two CL-327s on lease to the Australian Defence Force from Bombardier has been destroyed in a crash at the Royal Australian Air Force base Tindal.
Source: Flight International
