Sponsored by The British Robotics Seed Fund
http: www.britbots.com/fund
————————————————————————
08 Nov 23. USN tests sub-launched drones while industry continues designing. The U.S. Navy is experimenting with launching and recovering medium unmanned underwater vehicles from submarines, even as a formal acquisition effort is ongoing.
The Program Executive Office Unmanned and Small Combatants is pursuing the project, which is meant to create a common drone that can conduct expeditionary mine countermeasures or operate from submarines.
Capt. Kevin Smith, who leads the office, said this week at the Naval Submarine League’s annual symposium that the program is moving through the critical design review process and that industry partners Leidos and L3Harris Technologies had built a demonstration vehicle with their own research and development dollars to help accelerate the platform’s development.
The medium UUV is set to field within the next several years, but the Navy is already practicing with similar systems available from industry to learn how to use them.
The Navy’s initial Razorback effort, the version of the medium UUV that operates from submarines, resulted in a system that had to be launched and recovered from a special operations dry deck shelter, meaning its operations were labor intensive and only a limited number of submarines in the fleet could support them.
The current medium UUV program adds a torpedo tube launch and recovery capability, allowing any submarine in the fleet to become a drone mothership.
“I think we are very close to deploying a torpedo tube-launched and -recovered UUV here within the next year. So that’s going to be a big deal for us because success in that space is going to allow us to start operating at scale and putting these capabilities on every submarine,” Rear Adm. Rob Gaucher, who serves as a special assistant to U.S. Fleet Forces Command and is the nominee for Naval Submarine Forces commander, said at the conference.
He told Defense News that Submarine Force Atlantic conducted an effort called Yellow Moray, where it tested a Remus UUV from the defense contractor HII. Submarine Force Pacific conducted a similar Rat Trap exercise, where it successfully launched and recovered an L3Harris-made UUV from a submarine torpedo tube.
“There is a plan in place to deploy that in 2024. Now, will we get there? We still have some testing to do, but that’s our plan and that’s what we’re shooting for,” Gaucher said.
He noted this effort to field an initial capability next year is happening in parallel to the formal medium UUV development and acquisition effort. He also said among the success in these early efforts are lingering challenges, but he is optimistic the fleet can adopt an unmanned capability soon.
“We want to get out there and get in the water — that’s the biggest thing,” Gaucher said.
Even as the medium UUV acquisition and experimentation efforts continue, Gaucher said in a speech at the event that other unmanned underwater vessels had already contributed to real-world operations and global exercises. The admiral said American UUVs had participated in 11 exercise alongside 17 countries in the European theater, with a focus on mine countermeasures operations. The U.S. Navy had also sent UUVs to help survey the Nord Stream natural gas pipeline in the Baltic Sea following a September 2022 explosion.
In the Middle East, the admiral said, UUVs have conducted seabed surveys, harbor surveys and harbor defense missions.
And in the Pacific, they participated in 10 exercises with four allies and partners to conduct mine countermeasures and mining operations, plus an Integrated Battle Problem exercise focused on subsea and seabed warfare to inform future collaboration between the U.S., Australia and the United Kingdom. (Source: C4ISR & Networks)
07 Nov 23. Cabinet nod of approval for Milkor 380 UAV. Acknowledgement of achievements in the South African defence industry (SADI) are few and far between so the pat on the back from the latest Cabinet meeting for private sector company Milkor earns a sustained round of applause.
The post-Cabinet meeting statement, delivered yesterday (Monday, 6 November) by Minister in The Presidency Khumbudzo Ntshavheni, congratulates Centurion-headquartered Milkor “on their successful launch of the Milkor 380 unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), which places South Africa among the countries that continue to make strides in drone technology”.
The statement further notes the Milkor 380 “is the largest drone built in Africa and it will be used by the defence industry for combat, border control, conservation efforts including to combat poaching”.
Milkor put the large UAV – it has an 18.6 metre wingspan and maximum take-off weight of 1 300kg – aloft for its maiden flight on 19 September. The Milkor 380 was unveiled some five years ago with successful taxi testing earlier this year.
The September maiden flight was hailed as “a significant” achievement for 42-year-old Milkor and the wider SADI by marketing and communication director Daniel du Plessis.
Flight trials are set to continue for the rest of this year and into the first quarter of next year.
Specifically designed for long endurance intelligence, surveillance, target acquisition and reconnaissance (ISTAR) operations, the Milkor 380 can carry a 210 kg external payload, including weapons and sensors. The UAV has previously been seen at defence exhibitions with Al Tariq X-series precision guided munitions, Halcon Desert Sting DS-16 guided bombs, FZ602 laser-guided rocket launchers, an L3-Harris gimbal, and Airborne Technologies’ self-contained aerial reconnaissance (SCAR) pod.
Keeping the Milkor 380 aloft for up to 35 hours is a 135 horsepower, four-stroke, four-cylinder turbocharged Rotax 915iS engine. The power plant gives an expected service ceiling of just on 10 000 metres, a 250 km/h maximum speed and 150km/h cruising speed.
Five UAVs are in production at the company’s Cape Town manufacturing facility and set for delivery next year, including for service in South Africa. (Source: https://www.defenceweb.co.za/)
09 Nov 23. Bosnia Presents Domestically Developed Drones.
The Center for Advanced Studies participated in the ninth edition of the Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) Economy Fair, which was held in Skenderija, and presented a program made in the past period, which also included prototypes of drones.
Among other things, the CNT1045-8 and CNT2200-2 drones were presented at the fair.
The CNT1045-8 drone has eight engines, a maximum thrust of 200 newtons, a maximum permissible take-off weight of 12 kilograms, a flight time of 30 minutes, and a radio communication range of 10 kilometers.
The CNT2200-2 drone has one engine, a wingspan of 2.2 meters, a maximum thrust of 50 newtons, a take-off weight of six kilograms, a flight time of 20 minutes, and a radio communication range of six kilometers.
Dean Dzebic, a military security analyst, says that drones, like all other products from the CNT range, are intended for civilian use, but it must be acknowledged that they manage to follow trends in this regard as well.
“The future development of a Multicopter that will carry up to 30 kilograms of payload represents an understanding of trends and markets. Modern wars and armed conflicts of the 21st century represent a cost-result dimension of warfare. According to this pattern, expensive and complex combat systems are successfully destroyed by simple systems that are easy to use and quickly move from zero series to serial production,” Dzebic stated.
He states that the future of the defense industry in BiH will depend on the possibility of imposing itself on the market as a country with an acceptable price of raw materials and production costs.
“Ultimately, it is also necessary to train personnel in the field of ballistics, propulsion, and the entire spectrum of fields for which the higher education system in BiH is under-capacitated. Due to all the constitutional and political difficulties, all companies from the defense industry in BiH should try to join a single consortium that will represent them on the third market,” suggests Dzebic, (Source: UAS VISION/Klix)
08 Nov 23. AeroVironment’s JUMP 20 Medium UAS Demos Maritime Autonomous Takeoff and Landing at Vessel Speeds Over 20 Knots. AeroVironment, Inc (NASDAQ: AVAV) today announced the company’s JUMP 20 VTOL Medium UAS exceeded expectations during the recent U.S. Naval Forces Southern Command/4th Fleet Hybrid Fleet Campaign Event (HFCE) that demonstrated human-machine teaming in the maritime domain. The JUMP 20 provided ship-based intelligence, surveillance, reconnaissance, and targeting (ISR-T) support to USFOURTHFLT and USSOUTHCOM during the week-long, at-sea exercise onboard USNS Burlington. The JUMP 20 has previously flown over 130,000 land-based hours in support of U.S. Special Operations Command combat deployments, and the expansion of JUMP 20 operations into the shipboard environment allows AeroVironment to provide these services globally.
During HFCE, JUMP 20 showcased its ability to launch and recover at vessel speeds over 20 knots, with fully autonomous flight from takeoff to landing. The JUMP 20 requires neither launch or recovery equipment, nor personnel on the flight deck during launch and recovery, maximizing operational safety and flexibility for users. JUMP 20’s vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL) capability, and class-leading endurance and payload capacity expand the operational capabilities of U.S. and allies to compete and win in the era of great power competition. The JUMP 20 demonstrated how uncrewed systems will support distributed operations across multiple domains, supporting national security objectives and our warfighters.
“The shipboard flight environment is dynamic and challenging. JUMP 20 is a proven combat-effective platform, and the system’s performance during HFCE illustrates the value to maritime operations. JUMP 20’s ability to launch and land at speed, and without personnel intervention, enhances the ship’s operational effectiveness and enables operators to focus on important mission tasking,” said Shane Hastings, AeroVironment’s vice president and product line general manager for Medium UAS. “As we continue to demonstrate and prove the effectiveness of the JUMP 20 platform, we look forward to getting this capability in the hands of our sailors, Marines, and allies operating in the maritime environment.” AeroVironment JUMP 20 is deployed to U.S. and allied militaries around the world, and it can be provided on a contractor-owned / contractor-operated (COCO) basis to maximize operational flexibility. (Source: ASD Network)
07 Nov 23. Russian Company Launches Drone Manufacturing Partnership in Uzbekistan. FlySeeagro, a Russian drone manufacturer, based in Krasnador, announced this week it was investing $80 m in establishing a new production line in cooperation with the Directorate of the Navoi Free Economic Zone in Uzbekistan.
The project will be overseen by Russian specialists with the aim of providing drones to the Russian market and third countries, particularly the Middle East.
An official statement on the plans by the CEO of the economic zone, Khabib Abdullaev, said its drones were only intended for “agricultural” purposes.
He added: “It is impossible to use them for military purposes, because the parameters are completely different.”
While there is nothing on the FlySeeagro website to contradict that assertion, the war in Ukraine has shown that the line between military and civilian drones is so fine as to be virtually non-existent.
FlySeeagro boasts of having one of the most modern drone parks in Russia and five years of experience in applying the latest drone technologies.
Key members of the company’s senior management team have a military background and even declare on the site that they maintain those links.
Its “Head of Flight,” Yuri Tiuntin, is a master of the sport of aeromodelling and teaches the subject to reservists of Russia’s armed forces in Krasnador, while its “Head of Sales,” Vitali Eframov, is a former fighter pilot.
Despite FlySeeagro’s public “non-military” stance, its corporate video shows staff dressed in camouflage clothing as they prepare and launch their drones.
Russia has used drones extensively in its full-scale military offensive in Ukraine, ramping up production as it seeks to hold back the Ukrainian counteroffensive.
Uzbekistan, a former Soviet republic in Central Asia, has refused to endorse Russia’s invasion, but it still maintains close economic and political ties with its former Soviet ally.
The US Treasury announced on Thursday that among the 130 entities being subjected to new sanctions were 13 companies accused of helping Russia to acquire critical military drone technology for use in Ukraine. The restrictions include those against one based in Uzbekistan. (Source: UAS VISION/ Kyiv Post)
07 Nov 23. Kratos Reveals Thanatos Tactical UAV. Kratos has provided a rendering of its Thanatos drone for the first time. The company says it hopes to have gotten a contract by next year related to this stealth drone, the most advanced design the company has unveiled to date.
Though the potential customer remains unnamed, the artist’s conception includes a U.S. Air Force logo, suggesting this could be tied to the service’s Collaborative Combat Aircraft program or other advanced drone projects.
We are in discussions with a customer and hope to be under contract next year related to certain other Kratos tactical drone systems, including Thanatos,”
Eric DeMarco, Kratos’ President and CEO, said in a press release.
The rendering does show a tailless uncrewed aircraft with a number of textbook low-observable (stealthy) elements, including a shovel nose design, deep chine line, blended and recessed inlets, and a platypus-like trailing edge extension concealing a recessed exhaust. A tail design like this helps significantly reduce an aircraft’s infrared signature on top of its radar stealth features.
Thanatos also has diamond-shaped wings, which can offer reduced drag at high subsonic and supersonic speeds.
As has already been noted, the rendering shows Thanatos wearing both a Kratos logo and a U.S. Air Force logo. We have seen this combination in renderings of other drones the company has pitched to the Air Force in the past. This makes it very likely that the potential customer Kratos is hoping to get a contract from in relation to this design is the Air Force. (Source: UAS VISION/y!news)
06 Nov 23. Matternet Gets FAA Type Certification Amendment for M2 Drone Delivery System. Matternet has announced that the Matternet M2 drone has achieved approval for an amendment to its first-ever UAS Type Certification by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).
This groundbreaking development highlights the continued improvements Matternet has made to the M2 aircraft’s hardware and software, which will enable Matternet and its customers to scale operations faster and more cost-effectively.
“We are thrilled with the FAA’s decision to grant this amendment, the first-ever to a UAS Type Certification,” said Andreas Raptopoulos, Founder and CEO of Matternet. “As we develop more advanced technology, it’s very important that we are able to move quickly through the FAA Type Certification process, the gold standard in airworthiness certification.”
Matternet has now received its second Type Certificate approval before any other delivery drones have achieved that mark across the industry. In 2022, Matternet’s M2 drone became the first non-military unmanned aircraft to achieve Type Certification (September 2022) and Production Certification (November 2022) in the United States. The aircraft underwent a rigorous evaluation process by the FAA, which resulted in the M2 drone proving to be airworthy and eligible for scaled commercial delivery operations.
The company is committed to evaluating the ever-evolving market and taking advantage of exciting opportunities that will encourage mass adoption and drive the industry forward. Matternet has established a global footprint through noteworthy partnerships and operations and today’s announcement will allow the company to continue expanding its customer base.
The updated version of the M2 aircraft is currently in production and will be made immediately available as Matternet continues to work on exceeding regulatory hurdles so that drone delivery can become widely available to everyone. The company continues to explore and scale operations throughout the United States, Europe, and the Middle East.
(Source: UAS VISION)
————————————————————————-
The British Robotics Seed Fund is the first SEIS-qualifying investment fund specialising in UK-based robotics businesses. The focus of the fund is to deliver superior returns to investors by making targeted investments in a mixed basket of the most innovative and disruptive businesses that are exploiting the new generation of robotics technologies in defence and other sector applications.
Automation and robotisation are beginning to drive significant productivity improvements in the global economy heralding a new industrial revolution. The fund allows investors to benefit from this exciting opportunity, whilst also delivering the extremely attractive tax reliefs offered by the Seed Enterprise Investment Scheme (SEIS). For many private investors, the amount of specialist knowledge required to assess investments in robotics is not practical and hence investing through a fund structure makes good sense.
The fund appoints expert mentors to work with each investee company to further maximise the chance of success for investors. Further details are available on request.
www.britbots.com/fund
————————————————————————