Ramon Lopez/WASHINGTON DC
The UK may exercise a Royal Navy Type 23 frigate alongside US Navy vertical take-off and landing tactical unmanned air vehicle (VTUAV) sea trials. It is funding a study to define what is required for full function and control of VTUAV flight operations from warships.
The at-sea flight demonstration involving the Bombardier CL-327 Guardian co-axial rotor UAV is to begin by July and the Eagle Eye tiltrotor UAV developed by Bell will undergo shipborne flight testing in February 2000.
The UK Ministry of Defence, which has bought two tactical control stations (TCS), previously agreed to participate in the US maritime UAV demonstration to help establish its needs for a maritime reconnaissance system. The UK will take delivery of the first TCS in the USA and install it in a US warship for the Guardian evaluation.
According to sources, discussions are under way for the portable TCS to be moved to a Type 23 frigate that would be dedicated for several weeks to the Eagle Eye trials. The tiltrotor UAV would still operate from a USN warship and the TCS will not be used to control the UAVs. The UK TCS operator would simply receive payload data from the VTOL UAVs.
UK funding issues need to be resolved, but industry sources say exercising a UK warship with Eagle Eye would be "a major step forward" in preparing for the NATO Project Group 35's planned trilateral international technology demonstrator project.
The US Navy UAV Programme Office is expected to award contracts to Bell and Bombardier soon to study design requirements for a TCS/VTUAV datalink control module. The research awards will be underwritten by the UK.
• The UK MoD will award a one-year study contract by July to set specifications for a back-up high-integrity datalink for UAVs. Nortel, Marconi and an Ultra/ Cubic team are competing.
Source: Flight International
