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02 May 24. Manta Ray UUV prototype completes in-water testing.
The DARPA programme marks a milestone achievement in modular underwater vehicle capabilities.
Northrop Grumman‘s Manta Ray prototype UUV has passed in-water testing off the coast of Southern California, showcasing its modular design and potential for real-world deployment.
The testing phase showcased the vehicle’s hydrodynamic performance, encompassing submerged operations utilising its modes of propulsion and steering, including buoyancy, propellers, and control surfaces.
Northrop’s expertise in advanced networking solutions and platform development has led to its participation in the US Navy’s Manta Ray and Angler UUV development programmes, as explained in GlobalData’s “Thematic Intelligence: Unmanned Maritime Vehicles 2023” report.
To embed unmanned vehicles into the future fleet structure, the US Navy has been making investments in several areas, including large and medium USVs, extra-large UUVs, large UUVs, Manta Rays, and more.
Dr Kyle Woerner, DARPA programme manager for Manta Ray, expressed enthusiasm for the testing, emphasising the vehicle’s readiness for practical deployment. “Our successful, full-scale Manta Ray testing validates the vehicle’s readiness to advance toward real-world operations after being rapidly assembled in the field from modular subsections,” said Dr Woerner.
The combination of cross-country modular transportation, in-field assembly, and subsequent deployment demonstrates a first-of-kind capability for an extra-large UUV.”
The US Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) awarded Phase 2 contracts for its Manta Ray project in 2021, selecting Northrop Grumman Corporation alongside Martin Defense Group and Metron.
A notable aspect of the Manta Ray prototype’s testing phase was the logistics demonstrated by Northrop Grumman, which shipped the vehicle in subsections from its build location in Maryland to the testing site in California. This approach showcases the ease of transportation and supports the possibility of rapid deployment on a global scale without monopolising pier space at naval facilities.
“Shipping the vehicle directly to its intended area of operation conserves energy that the vehicle would otherwise expend during transit,” continued Dr. Woerner.
With its design featuring multiple payload bays of various sizes and types, the Manta Ray prototype holds promise for an array of naval mission sets, ranging from reconnaissance to surveillance. The vehicle’s ability to navigate through the water, propelled by buoyancy-driven gliding, further enhances its appeal for operations in maritime environments.
The Manta Ray project, initiated by DARPA, aims to open the way for long-duration, long-range, payload-capable UUVs primed for deployment in maritime scenarios as DARPA collaborates with the US Navy on the next phase of testing and technology transition.
Meanwhile, PacMar Technologies, another participant in the Manta Ray programme, will continue its endeavours in 2024, focusing on testing its full-scale energy harvesting system. (Source: naval-technology.com)
02 May 24. Luftwaffe declares Heron TP ready for Germany-based operations. The Luftwaffe has declared its leased Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) Heron TP unmanned aircraft systems (UASs) to be ready for Germany-based operations worldwide, with flights to commence in mid-May. The Luftwaffe announced the milestone on 2 May, saying that the airworthiness certificate for the UAS had been signed by the German Federal Aviation Office in Cologne on the same day. “The approval of our new reconnaissance drone is valid worldwide,” the service said, adding that flights will soon commence out of Jagel (also known as Schleswig Air Base) in the far north of the country. The announcement follows the Heron TP being awarded a type certificate by the German Military Aviation Authority in late 2022, at which time it was operated out of an undisclosed location in Israel. The Heron TP is intended to bridge the gap between the retirement of the earlier Heron 1 UAS and the introduction of the new European medium-altitude long-endurance UAS known as Eurodrone, with Airbus Defence and Space operating five air vehicles out to 2027. (Source: Janes)
02 May 24. Overwatch Group launches unique drone technology to the US market at SOF 2024. Overwatch Group, a UK-based end-to-end design and manufacture company specialising in advanced unmanned system and munitions technologies, are launching their unique drone technology into the US market at SOF 2024. At the event, they are showcasing their latest development to potential customers privately. Interested parties can request a meeting via the Overwatch website.
Overwatch is a defence company that manufactures a pioneering coaxial drone and associated payload technology. Their payload agnostic, low weight, high effect drone weapon systems are man-portable providing protection through precision strike, thereby enabling operators to respond at pace to ever-evolving tactical requirements in the battlespace.
Since 2022, the company has delivered around 800 of their unmanned aerial precision strike systems in support of the UK’s contribution to global defence and security. Earlier this year, Overwatch also participated in the US-hosted major army warfighting experiment in California; as part of Project Convergence Capstone 4 (PC-C4). The exercise, with over 600 British Army troops along with thousands from six other nations, was undertaken to bring multinational forces together to establish how to combine situational awareness and command and control.
As part of PC-C4, Overwatch contributed to an integrated reconnaissance and precision strike demonstration at White Sands missile range. This will help commanders make the right decisions and deliver the best effects to win on future battlefields. Overwatch provided the precision strike capability through its loitering munitions which were integrated with higher altitude ISR assets and into the wider C2 system.
All Overwatch design and manufacture is undertaken in-house and provides a full turnkey capability on behalf of the nations it supports. For 2024, Overwatch are focusing heavily on bringing its next-generation coaxial drone systems to global markets, and their solutions are particularly relevant to US military requirements. Producing drones that are agnostic of payload, Overwatch has also been able to develop an array of energetic and non-energetic payloads that provide a wide range of CONOPS; from precision strike to operational support from a common platform.
Drew Michael, CEO at Overwatch Group said, “We are extremely proud of our veteran ethos of ‘designed by soldiers for soldiers’. Our systems are built with the soldier in mind, to minimise the training burden, and maximise operational flexibility with our approach that enables specific-to-task drone and payload configurations. As our R&D of cutting-edge drone and payload technologies continues to gather pace in line with our growth strategy, we are now well placed to extend our precision strike capabilities to wider markets. We are delighted that US SOF 2024 provides us with this opportunity and we look forward to meeting people at the event”.
02 May 24. Mobile Production System for Mass UAV Manufacturing. The new Mobile Production System (MPS) from RapidFlight enables the manufacturing and deployment of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) from forward locations anywhere in the world, producing up to 28 Group 3 aircraft per month.
RapidFlight, an integrated designer and manufacturer of unmanned aircraft systems (UAS), has released its user-proven Mobile Production System (MPS).
MPS enables the manufacturing and deployment of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) from forward locations. RapidFlight states that its MPS can be used as an effective way to mass manufacture UAVs anywhere in the world.
MPS utilizes commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) components for ease of global deployment and compliance with U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) requirements. They are powered via any 110v-240v AC power source in the world.
Operationally, MPS units are designed to function in the same environment that a warfighter is deployed. MPS can handle wet, dry, hot, cold, clean, and dirty environments with operational limits currently set from -20º F to 130º F and very high humidity.
A single MPS can produce 28 Group 3 aircraft per month (or much higher quantities for Group 2 and/or Group 1). Each MPS unit can be operated independently or in coordination with other MPS units by two trained technicians.
For example, 2,500 or more Group 3 UAVs of the same or varying designs can be manufactured in a year by deploying as few as eight MPS units. The footprint for this production would be half the size of a standard basketball court and set up in less than one week. MPS are easily transported by traditional ground, sea, or air vehicles.
RapidFlight engineers have optimized the hardware and software technology stack specifically for MPS capabilities, offering users the flexibility to quickly deploy new designs or iteratively add additional aircraft capability for the constantly evolving needs within operational theaters.
Additional benefits include the small logistical and operational footprint, more resilient supply chain, and minimized inventory that the MPS concept enables. With multiple MPS units deployed in strategic locations, users can quickly create a distributed and resilient network of UAS production and support, even in remote areas and austere environments.
The company state that the MPS can be operated by the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD), its allies, RapidFlight itself, and defense contractor primes.
Jeff Ratcliffe, a panelist on the “Additive Manufacturing & Advanced Materials Use-cases for Attritable Defense Unmanned Systems” session at XPONENTIAL and business development executive at RapidFlight, commented; “RapidFlight MPS enables deployed production of any UAV platform within a small operational and logistical footprint. We’ve designed over 20 different types of air vehicles that are customized for specific missions including: intelligence, surveillance, reconnaissance, electronic warfare, communications, and strike.
“Leveraging MPS, RapidFlight ensures that commanders in the field have the flexibility to respond and adapt to any emergent need with real-time design and the unique ability to scale up production at the edge.” (Source: https://www.defenseadvancement.com/)
30 Apr 24. Kaman Corporation Celebrates Successful First Flight of Autonomous KARGO UAV. Kaman Corporation has announced the significant achievement of the first flight of the full-scale KARGO UAV, a purpose-built, autonomous, expeditionary resupply vehicle. This milestone, which took place in December of 2023, signifies a major accomplishment in the ongoing flight test progression.
The development of this medium-lift UAS, initiated in 2021 to address logistics needs for U. S. Marine Corps operations, is now well underway.
“It is difficult to describe the sense of satisfaction one feels when watching an aircraft take flight for the first time, and very few people get the opportunity to participate in something like this,” said Romin Dasmalchi, General Manager of KARGO UAV. “This team worked hard to get here, and the intensity continues as we look to move from prototyping to production,” he added.
KARGO UAV is intended to support the U. S. Military, partners, allies, and commercial customers by providing affordable, reliable, and maintainable logistics support in austere and maritime environments. The design leverages existing high-TRL components so that a suitable system could be deployed as soon as 2026.
Contributions from partners significantly aided the success of the KARGO UAV flight test. Near Earth Autonomy, Kaman’s partner for the autonomy system based in Pittsburgh, PA, provided autonomy features on the KARGO UAV. The two companies had previously collaborated on the K-MAX unmanned system and had showcased an earlier version of the autonomy technology to the Marines in April 2021. The Alaska Center for UAS Integration, part of the University of Alaska Fairbanks Geophysical Institute, was key in facilitating KARGO UAV flight test operations.
KARGO UAV is currently competing under the Marines’ Medium Autonomous Resupply Vehicle—Expeditionary Logistics (MARV-EL) program, which is managed by NAVAIR PMA-263 and culminates in a fly-off in July of this year. (Source: UAS VISION)
30 Apr24. General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Inc. (GA-ASI) and the U.S. Marine Corps (USMC) celebrated the delivery of the first MQ-9A Extended Range (ER) Unmanned Aircraft System (UAS) to Marine Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Training Squadron 2 (VMUT-2). The delivery of the MQ-9A ER on March 18, 2024, is part of the Marine Air-Ground Task Force (MAGTF) Unmanned Expeditionary (MUX) Program, which ordered eight MQ-9A ER UAS as part of the ARES Indefinite-Delivery/Indefinite-Quantity (ID/IQ) contract.
“It’s exciting to make this first delivery to VMUT-2, which continues to build the relationship between GA-ASI, the USMC, and NAVAIR (Naval Air Systems Command),” said GA-ASI vice president of DoD Strategic Development Patrick Shortsleeve. “GA-ASI has been a contracted warfighting partner of the USMC for several years and VMUT-2’s ability to produce aircrews for the USMC is a tremendous advancement in the USMC’s organic capability.”
VMUT-2 is a UAS training squadron for the USMC based at Marine Corps Air Station Cherry Point in Havelock, North Carolina.
The MQ-9A ER is designed with field-retrofittable capabilities such as wing-borne fuel pods and reinforced landing gear that extend the aircraft’s endurance to more than 30 hours while further increasing its operational flexibility. The aircraft provides long-endurance, persistent surveillance capabilities with Full-Motion Video and Synthetic Aperture Radar/Moving Target Indicator/Maritime Mode Radar. An extremely reliable aircraft, MQ-9A ER is equipped with a fault-tolerant flight control system and a triple-redundant avionics system architecture. It is engineered to meet and exceed manned aircraft reliability standards.
30 Apr 24. Competitors Not Picked for CCA Look Forward to Increment 2. The three contractors not chosen for the first increment of the Collaborative Combat Aircraft program say they’re staying in the arena and will compete for other autonomous aircraft work for the Navy, foreign governments, and in the classified domain. But only two said definitively they will compete for Increment 2 of the Air Force’s CCA.
The U.S. Air Force announced April 25 that Anduril, a relatively new startup, and General Atomics, the service’s main drone-builder over the last 30 years, each won CCA contracts. Boeing, Lockheed Martin, and Northrop Grumman, the traditional aircraft primes, were not chosen, although the Air Force said they could compete for future CCA work at their own expense.
The Air Force was not able to immediately provide details of how Anduril and General Atomics’ CCA options have been exercised or what the wins translate to in terms of funds.
Northrop Grumman chief executive officer Kathy Warden said her company is “obviously disappointed” not to be chosen, but noted that the Air Force has “described this acquisition strategy as a continuous competition, as they’re already outlining future phases. So, we’ll see what that presents in terms of a future entry point.”
Warden, speaking on an earnings call April 25, also said the Navy and foreign governments are pursuing similar programs, “and so we are pursuing those opportunities.”
“We haven’t learned anything at this point that fundamentally changes our strategy in autonomy,” she added. “But we’ll monitor how the CCA program progresses and incorporate any learnings that we have into those future opportunities.”
The company wants to expand its presence in the emerging market of CCA-like platforms, Warden said.
“We are obviously working toward affordability in our product line,” she said. “So, we do not want to be viewed as only offering exquisite and expensive technology. We’ve been working to drive down the cost of our offerings, and I think we had quite a compelling offering on CCA and can compete in that marketplace.”
She said Northrop is well-positioned to meet customer needs “against the high-end threats,” but isn’t looking to be a player in the “more commoditized part of the market: very low cost and not survivable systems. That’s just not our business model.”
Boeing, in a press release, also expressed disappointment:
“While we are disappointed that we won’t be moving forward in this phase of the U.S. Air Force’s Collaborative Combat Aircraft program, we are undeterred in our commitment to providing next-generation autonomous combat aircraft for U.S. and global military customers. Work continues on our robust and growing autonomous family, including the MQ-25 Stingray and future derivatives, the MQ-28 Ghost Bat, and a number of proprietary programs we can’t disclose.”
The Stingray is a carrier-launched, autonomous aerial tanker, while the Ghost Bat is a modular CCA-like platform developed by Boeing Australia, in partnership with the Royal Australian Air Force.
In its statement, Lockheed Martin noted that the CCA will have to work with the F-22 and F-35 fighters it builds.
The company “remains committed to advancing the state of the art in autonomous systems for air and ground missions. … For some time, we’ve been focused on bringing to life the transformative power of autonomous and AI/ML [artificial intelligence/machine learning] enabled operations in crewed and uncrewed DOD systems, with particular focus on integrating CCA with F-35 and F-22. These commitments and work are ongoing.”
Lockheed did not say, however, that it will continue competing for CCA per se, either as a manufacturer for Increment 1 or as prime on Increment 2. Asked about this, a Lockheed spokesperson said the statement stands, and noted the comment about the “commitments” and work “ongoing.”
While Northrop has said it will not pursue the Air Force’s Next Generation Air Dominance (NGAD) crewed fighter that is to replace the F-22, Boeing and Lockheed have said they are pursuing that project. The Air Force refers to the CCA as part of NGAD, funding the two under the same budget line item and describing the CCA as part of the NGAD’s “family of systems.” (Source: UAS VISION/Air & Space Forces)
29 Apr 24. US Army options Textron Systems, Griffon Aerospace to fly FTUAS competitors. The US Army on 25 April declared Option 2 of the Future Tactical Uncrewed Aircraft System (FTUAS) Rapid Prototyping Program finished, exercising Options 3 and 4 for both Textron Systems and Griffon Aerospace to build and test production-representative Aerosonde Mk 4.8 and Valiant UASs respectively.
“FTUAS program Options 3 and 4 give us the opportunity to demonstrate our Aerosonde Mk 4.8 HQ [Hybrid Quadrotor] UAS and further advance its capabilities before delivering a system for customer test and evaluation,” said Wayne Prender, Textron Systems’ senior vice-president for Air Systems, in a statement.
Griffon Aerospace told Janes that the company was “honoured and excited” to be included in the award but declined to respond to further questions.
Five companies competed for the initial FTUAS contract, of which only two – Griffon Aerospace and Textron Systems – made the Option 2 cut-off.
In September 2023 the US Army selected the Griffon Aerospace Valiant and Textron Systems Aerosonde Mk 4.8 HQ for the second phase of FTUAS, which advanced the two designs through critical design review (CDR), the last step before building and testing a prototype aircraft. (Source: Janes)
29 Apr 24. TEKEVER Introduces ARX Drone with Swarm Capability. TEKEVER, a provider of unmanned aerial systems (UAS) in Europe, introduced its newest drone the ARX in San Diego, U.S. on Tuesday (Apr. 23). The company touted its newest product as capable of coordinating a swarm of smaller drones from a primary mother drone.
“We’re thrilled to announce the ARX, which is one of the world’s most advanced drones in its class. It marks a significant step forward for TEKEVER. It is our first drone to include swarm capabilities, which enables it to carry out complex missions, revolutionizing surveillance, and search & rescue operations in both the civilian and military worlds,” said Ricardo Mendes, CEO of TEKEVER.
“At TEKEVER, we are constantly innovating to develop the most advanced intelligence solutions so we can continue to be the UAS partner of choice for organizations undertaking critical environmental, commercial, and geopolitical matters,” he added.
Slated for commercial release in 2025, the drone is equipped with onboard AI/ML capabilities and a fully modular payload configuration supporting various sensors and cargo. This is expected to offer significant enhancements in surveillance and life-saving capabilities for both civilian and military applications.
With a 600 kg maximum takeoff weight, the ARX offers long-range endurance, advanced connectivity, and adaptable payload configurations. It aims to address challenges in wide-area surveillance, facilitating missions at sea and on land.
The drone offers versatile payload options, including heavy lift, sensors, and cargo, with a variety of sensor choices like EO/IR, MS/HS, LIDAR, AIS, ADSB, SAR SIGINT/COMINT/ELINT, and more. Integrated within a compact platform with minimal logistics requirements, it targets challenges in the long-range market.
Part of TEKEVER’s UAS family including the AR3, AR4, and AR5 systems, the ARX shares a common architecture for efficient operations and continuous evolution. The ARX Digital Twin streamlines operational processes, aiding simulation, testing, and maintenance. (Source: UAS VISION)
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