Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs)

The Department of Defense Continues Its Development of UAV's

'The DoD continues work on its X-45C UAV and has called for an unmanned heavy bomber by 2020 When it comes to the future of military aircraft, unmanned planes seems to be where the United States is heading. The...

Singapore receives first Skyblade II

'Singapore Technologies Aerospace (ST Aero) has delivered its first production unmanned air vehicle – a short-range, hand-launched reconnaissance aircraft – to the Singaporean army. ST Aero says it delivered the first of four Skyblade II UAVs in late January,...

Global Hawks To Iraq

'The first production models of the RQ-4A unmanned aerial vehicle have reported for duty in Iraq where they will be used in surveillance missions. A pair of the Global Hawks built in California by Northrop Grumman were shipped to...

Protonex Awarded USAF Contract for Fuel Cell UAV

Protonex Technology Corporation, a leading manufacturer of high-performance fuel cell power systems for portable and remote applications, was awarded a contract by the U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) to develop power systems for long- endurance micro unmanned aerial...

Lockheed to provide UND with UAV Lockheed to provide UND with UAV

'Lockheed Martin Corp., the largest U.S. defense contractor, is providing the University of North Dakota's aerospace school with specialized training and access to an unmanned aerial vehicle, the school says. "We will have an operational UAV available for test...

Chinese Army May Have UAVs

'Yamaha's highly revered RMax UAV may have slipped into the hands of the People's Liberation Army In what could be an unnerving revelation, several Japanese unmanned helicopters produced by Yamaha Motor may be in the possession of the China's...

British CORAX UAV Joins UCAV Trend

'Defense Tech reports on BAE Systems' CORAX Unmanned Combat Air Vehicle (UCAV), an unmanned fighter with stealth features whose early models look somewhat like the USA's Darkstar technology demonstrator. DefenseTech offers a quick background that draws on behind-the-wall material...

AVATAR, Australian designed unmanned aerial vehicle

'Whether mustering cattle on vast outback stations, searching for missing bushwalkers or conducting military operations on the ground, the advantages of seeing “over-the-hill” without having to move from your current location don't need to be spelled out. These are...

Unmanned Shadow Watches from Above

'Troops on the ground in Iraq face many risks - the insurgents and anti-Iraqi forces are devious when it comes to placing improvised explosive devices and hiding weapons caches. It always helps to have an extra set of eyes...

European UAV makers urged to work together

'European manufacturers of remote sensors need to bridge the technology gap that exists between them and their US counterparts to avoid missing out on a potentially huge market for military and civil unmanned air vehicles. European suppliers need to...

U.S. Drone Planes Have a Nearly Perfect Record of Failure

'In the dark, pre-dawn hours of Friday, the thirteenth of January, near the Afghan-Pakistani border, the buzz of an unmanned robot plane broke the silence. Half a world and 12 and a half time zones away, someone on the...

Pilots Surrender to UAVs

'The U.S. Department of Defense has decided to make the next generation heavy bomber an unmanned aircraft. The Department of Defense also wants the new aircraft in service by the end of the next decade, some twenty years ahead...

New Aircraft, UAVs to Shape Future Fight

'More than 300 aircraft of all types will roll off assembly lines and improve the Army’s war-fighting capability during the next seven years, according to Army aviation leaders at a forum here. Speaking to more than 400 attendees during...

Robotic Fighters Coming in on GPS

'A recent simulated test of military unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) demonstrated yet one more envisioned GPS role in future military operations. As part of the Joint Unmanned Combat Air Systems (J-UCAS) program, Northrop Grumman performed a test of simulated,...

Corax UAV - Picture and Information

'The UK has proved that there's a little fight left in its military aerospace industry by unveiling the “Corax” unmanned stealth surveillance aircraft: According to the BBC, the BAE systems project looks a bit like “a cancelled US military...

EASA calls for UAV airspace rules co-ordinating body

'The European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) is calling for the creation of a body to co-ordinate introduction of routine un­mannned air vehicle operations in the continent’s controlled airspace. The recommendation is part of an EASA effort to implement regulations...

Fire Scout UAV Gets Its Sea Legs, Completes First Autonomous Ship Landings

The U.S. Navy and Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE: NOC) wrote a new chapter in naval aviation history Jan. 16-17, when two RQ-8A Fire Scout unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) completed nine autonomous shipboard landings on board USS Nashville (LPD 13)...

Global Hawk Flies New Electronic Signal Intelligence Sensor

The U.S. Air Force's Global Hawk unmanned aerial vehicle has made its first flight carrying a new sensor that can detect and identify radar and other types of electronic devices from an altitude of 60,000 feet. Global Hawk and...

Northrop Grumman and the U.S. Army Successfully Test a New Joint Multi-mission Payload on the Hunter Unmanned Aerial Vehicle

Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC) and the U.S. Army have successfully conducted a series of flights of the RQ-5A Hunter unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) using a new payload that will allow warfighters to more quickly adapt to battlefield changes. The...

Spy plane selection under way in Japan

'Defense Agency chief Fukushiro Nukaga confirmed Wednesday that Japan will deploy U.S.-made unmanned reconnaissance planes as early as fiscal 2007, and that the selection process will move into high gear in March. In response to questions from reporters accompanying...

13 die in attack in Pakistani region bordering Afghanistan - UAV involved?

'At least eight paramilitary personnel and five civilians were killed in an attack early Saturday by unidentified people on a newly established security post in Pakistan's northern Waziristan bordering Afghanistan, reports from the area said. Defense Ministry spokesman Maj....

Northrop Grumman Takes Delivery of the First MQ-8B Fire Scout UAV Airframe

Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC - News) received the first MQ-8B Fire Scout unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) airframe from its teammate, Schweizer Aircraft Corp., on Jan. 3 at Northrop Grumman's new Unmanned Systems Center in Moss Point, Miss., signaling the...

UAVs Get Serious

'Without much fanfare, the U.S. Global Hawk UAV is taking over from manned aircraft, and space satellites. In the past year, Global Hawk was successfully tested a signals intelligence payload, as part of the Airborne SIGINT (Signals Intelligence) Payload...

Robonic to Deliver Fourth UAV Launcher to EADS

Robonic Ltd of Tampere, Finland, has signed a contract to deliver the fourth of the new series of launchers to EADS Deutschland GmbH. The launcher will be delivered in April of 2006. Three previous launchers see service in various...

Protonex Awarded US Air Force Contract for UAV Power Systems

Protonex Technology Corporation, a leading manufacturer of high-performance fuel cell power systems for portable and remote applications, was awarded a contract by the U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) to develop power systems for long-endurance micro unmanned aerial vehicles...

Keeping Predators flying helps keep Balad safe

'Airmen who maintain the MQ-1 Predator here take great pride in ensuring the unmanned aerial vehicles they look after can keep and eagle eye on what goes on in Iraq. The 61 Airmen of the 46th Aircraft Maintenance Unit...

First Fire Scout arrives in Jackson County

'The first of an anticipated 340 Fire Scout unmanned aerial vehicles to be assembled during the next five years has arrived at Northrop Grumman Integrated Systems' Unmanned Systems Center in Moss Point. The vertical take-off and landing UAV that...

UAV Air strike kills three Palestinians

'Israeli aircraft fired rockets in the direction of a car boarding Palestinians in the shanty town of Jabalya late on Monday scoring direct hits and killing three of its occupants. -- According to local radio stations, an Israeli pilotless...

Army To Fund Robotics Toolkit

'The proliferation of unmanned vehicle technologies used by the U.S. military has prompted an Army command to fund development of a toolkit that could be used for its entire fleet of unmanned ground vehicles. The U.S. Army's Transportation Command...

Pentagon to retire U-2 spy plane

'A classified budget document approved by the Pentagon Dec. 23 calls for the termination by 2011 of one of the most heavily relied-upon reconnaissance planes in the Iraq war. The storied U-2 spy plane would commence retirement in 2007...

Indian Navy's first UAV squadron to be commissioned on Jan 6

'The Chief of Naval Staff Admiral Arun Prakash will formally commission the Navy's first Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) squadron here on January 6. The Naval chief will review a ceremonial parade as part of the commissioning ceremony. The Navy...

Kestrel’s VTOL UAV begins tethered trials

'Kestrel Aerospace’s Lancer vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) unmanned air vehicle was due to undergo tethered hover tests late last month at an undisclosed private hangar in the UK. The VTOL UAV is an 80kg (175lb) vehicle able to...

EETimes.com - Army to fund robotics toolkit development

'The proliferation of unmanned vehicle technologies used by the U.S. military has prompted an Army command to fund development of a toolkit that could be used for its entire fleet of unmanned ground vehicles. The U.S. Army's Transportation Command...

Northrop Grumman-Built Global Hawk Surpasses 5,000 Combat Flight Hours

'The U.S. Air Force's RQ-4 Global Hawk unmanned aerial reconnaissance system, built by Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC), recently passed the 5,000 combat flight-hours mark while on a mission supporting the global war on terrorism. Deployed almost immediately following the...

Navy to station spy drones in Kochi

'India's maritime snooping capabilities are all set to get a boost, with the Navy now ready to operationally deploy its first-ever squadron of Israeli UAVs (Unmanned Aerial Vehicles) or spy drones. The Navy's first UAV squadron, with eight Searcher-II...

Northrop Grumman awarded $8.3M contract for Fire Scout testing on HSV-2 vessel

'Northrop Grumman Systems Corp, San Diego, Calif. is being awarded an $8,345,263 modification to a previously awarded cost-plus-fixed-fee contract (N00019-00-C-0277) for shipboard testing of Fire Scout Vertical Takeoff and Landing Tactical Unmanned Aerial Vehicle, including shipboard installation and flight...