UAVs and UCAVs

[LETHALFORCE]

http://www.spacedaily.com/reports/B...ide_On_NASA_Shuttle_Carrier_Aircraft_999.html

Boeing Phantom Ray Takes A Ride On NASA's Shuttle Carrier Aircraft

The Boeing Phantom Ray unmanned airborne system sits atop a NASA Shuttle Carrier Aircraft (SCA), a modified Boeing 747, as it takes off at 1:40 p.m. Central time for the test flight at Lambert International Airport.

The 50-minute flight was conducted in preparation for Phantom Ray's upcoming transport on the SCA to the Dryden Flight Research Center at Edwards Air Force Base, Calif.

"This is exciting not just because it's the first time that an aircraft other than the space shuttle has flown on the SCA, but also because it puts Phantom Ray that much closer to making its first flight," said Craig Brown, Phantom Ray program manager for Boeing.

The SCA flights with Phantom Ray are being conducted under a Boeing-funded, commercial Space Act Agreement with NASA.

Once Phantom Ray arrives at Dryden, it will undergo ground and high-speed taxi tests to prepare for its first flight in early 2011.

Phantom Ray is one of several programs in Boeing's Phantom Works division that are part of the company's rapid prototyping initiative to design, develop and build advanced aircraft and then demonstrate their capabilities.

 

[LETHALFORCE]

http://www.spacedaily.com/reports/France_to_decide_on_MALE_drone_soon_999.html

France to decide on MALE drone soon

French Defense Minister Alain Juppe has said that a final decision on the purchase of a medium-altitude, long-endurance surveillance drone will be made in February.

"I am waiting for the month of February to have all the elements of appreciation on all the different possible choices," Juppe told journalists on a visit to the infantry and artillery training schools at Draguignan in the south of France.

His predecessor was supposed to have made the decision two months ago but a Cabinet shakeup by President Nicolas Sarkozy put Juppe is the government's No. 2 position, pushing back, also, the drone plan known as MALE.

Among the options considered is the American-made drone called the Predator.

"There are various hypotheses, among them an off-the-shelf purchase of an American drone called Predator," Juppe was quoted saying by local media.

The purchase is a short-term solution pending development of a system put together by the United Kingdom and France. The countries launched the project this year as natural partners given their operational needs in Afghanistan.

"We're in the process of reviewing how to assure continuity of service while waiting for the Franco-British cooperation which allows us to develop a new generation drone," Juppe said.

It remains unclear whether in fact the French government would proceed with the purchase of the Predator as an interim solution given that leading French officials had deemed earlier in the year that it would go against French defense and national security policy.

Many military experts however favor the Predator for immediate deployment
in the Afghanistan combat theater.

The acquisition is expected to replace the current Harfang unmanned aircraft vehicle. To counter the Predator deal, EADS has offered to "sell four more Harfang air vehicles and deal with obsolesce issues on the current four units, three of which are deployed in Bagram Airfield in Afghanistan," the Defense News Web site reported.

It also said that Thales had also pitched a variant of the Watchkeeper high-altitude tactical drone, due to enter service with the British army next year.

The French air force wants the MALE drone to be operable as soon as possible, ideally from 2012. While two Harfang are in use in Afghanistan, a third is in use in France and a fourth is in repair in Israel.

France and Britain signed a defense cooperation treaty last month. It includes collaboration on the MALE drone.

 

[wild goose]

India successfully flight-tests pilotless Lakshya


India on Monday successfully flight-tested the indigenously developed micro-light Pilotless Target Aircraft Lakshya from the integrated test range (ITR) at Chandipur-on-sea in Orissa's Balasore district.

Lakshya, a sub-sonic and re-usable aerial target system remote controlled from the ground and designed to impart training to both air borne and destroying incoming enemy targets took off from ITR at 1.50 pm. DRDO sources called today's version as Digital Lakshya. The flight lasted for about 45 minutes, said director of ITR, SP Dash.

Lakshya has been developed by India's Aeronautic Development Establishment (ADE), Bangalore to perform discreet aerial reconnaissance of battlefield and target acquisition. It is launched by a solid propellant rocket motor, and sustained by a turbojet engine in flight. It has radar, IR and visual signature augmentation. Lakshya can be launched from land or ship and be recovered by a parachute system safely on land or sea. Lakshya's Ground control station and telemetry station allows pilotless control of aircraft and real time data acquisition. Till now, more than 200 Lakshya launches have been carried out

Meanwhile, DRDO is planning to test the nuclear-capable Prithvi-II ballistic missile on December 22 and 24 instead of the Advanced Air Defence Interceptor as planned earlier. The last tesfiring of Prithvi-II missile with a maximum range of 350 km on September 24 ended in an embarassing failure as the missile dropped off a few seconds after its launch from Integrated Test Range in Chandipur-on-sea of Orissa. DRDO had blamed the failure of the rocket engine on the failure.

DRDO sources said the faults in Prithvi-II has been rectified and the improved version would now be test-fired on December 22 and 24.

Bhubaneswar.

On December 11, the maiden testfiring of Agni-II Prime, a two-stage, surface-to-surface missile with a range of about 2,500 km failed as it veered off its trajectory and fell into the sea. Agni-II Prime was meant to fill the gap in the range between Agni-II and Agni-III.

http://www.indianexpress.com/news/india-successfully-flighttests-pilotless-lakshya/727063/2

 

[SHASH2K2]

Thanks to Benny for news.

Manufacturers prepare for Indian micro UAV contest​

Israeli manufacturers are preparing to team with Indian companies to offer mini- and micro-unmanned air vehicles. The Indian army is expected to release a request for quotations for the project in the first quarter of 2011.
Israel Aerospace Industries already has a strong foothold in India's defence establishment and is likely to offer one or more of its small UAV systems directly - possibly the developmental Mini Panther tiltrotor.
Aeronautics Defense Systems and Elbit Systems are looking for local partners, while BlueBird has already finalised a teaming agreement with Indian company Dynamatic Technologies.
BlueBird president Ronen Nadir says the teaming agreement is aimed, among other things, at establishing a better position in the forthcoming tender.
The Indian army is expected to seek delivery of 500 mini- and micro-UAV systems, with the selected design providing an endurance of at least 30min and the ability to be operated by one or two soldiers.
An earlier request for information also specified the use of either fuel or battery power, with hand-launch or vertical take-off and landing options.

 

[Patriot]

Killer Drones Converge on California, Ready to Take Off

Five years ago, the Pentagon was on cusp of an air-combat revolution. For a few brief, heady months in late 2005, it looked like the U.S. military might soon launch full-scale development of a new class of fast, lethal Unmanned Aerial Vehicles eventually capable of replacing all kinds of fighter jets, from the older F-15s, F-16s, and F-18s to the latest F-22s. But the revolution fizzled when the Air Force abandoned its share of the so-called Joint Unmanned Combat Air System effort. Manned jets continued to dominate, culminating in today's mammoth, $300-billion F-35 program.

The embers of upheaval kept burning, almost invisibly. The technology from the 2005 effort survived in various forms, slowly maturing amid a growing demand for combat UAVs. Today, no fewer than three separate killer drone designs — two of them direct descendants of the original J-UCAS demonstrators — have converged on two airfields in California for flight tests. The revolution flared up again without many people noticing. While the F-35 still gobbles up the bulk of the Pentagon's fighter funding, jet-powered killer drones are back — and revolution is once again a real prospect.

High-endurance armed drones such as the General Atomics Predator have been a fixture of U.S. military operations since the mid-'90s air war over the Balkans. Besides being cheaper to buy and operate, robot aircraft carry fuel in place of a pilot and so can stay in the air longer. Plus, if they crash or get shot down, nobody gets hurt. That means the military can assign drones to what one robot industry insider called the "worst down-and-dirty missions that even the nuttiest pilot wouldn't want to do."

But today's drones are "fair-weather" killers, too slow to survive the sophisticated air defenses of, say, China or Iran. To bring the advantages of robot aircraft to high-intensity warfare, the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency along with the Air Force and Navy sponsored J-UCAS starting in 2003. Boeing's X-45 (pictured) competed with the Northrop Grumman-built X-47 to "demonstrate the technical feasibility, military utility and operational value for a networked system of high performance, weaponized unmanned air vehicles," according to Darpa.

By 2005, the J-UCAS program had sent its prototypes on mock bombing runs and proved the drones could develop their own tactics on the fly. The "Common Operating System" meant to control the speedy, lethal bots was particularly promising, and with it J-UCAS even threatened to upstage the $300-billion F-35 manned-fighter program. The new drones were "on the cusp of making history in the aviation world," said the insider, a Boeing employee.

Then in 2006, the axe fell. The Air Force withdrew from the program. Officially, the Air Force wanted to shift its focus and cash to the new, manned (and ultimately short-lived) "2018 bomber." There were concerns that algorithms might not be trustworthy to make combat decisions, quite yet. Unofficially, the move away from J-UCAS might have reflected concerns among the Air Force's top brass that the new killer drone could hasten the demise of the traditional fighter pilot.

In any event, without the Air Force J-UCAS collapsed. The Navy continued funding the X-47 for a modest series of tests. The original X-45 ended up an exhibit in the Smithsonian's Air and Space Museum, never to fly again.

Or so observers believed. In fact, Boeing had secretly continued work on a new version of the X-45, apparently believing the Air Force would come back around to the idea of fighter-style killer drones. Meanwhile, a high-profile think piece (PDF) co-written by future Navy under-secretary Bob Work helped persuade the Navy to raise its expectations for the X-47. Sensing a new momentum for armed UAVs, General Atomics spent its own money to develop a bigger, jet-powered cousin of the Predator called the Avenger. In the summer of 2009, the Air Force published a "road map" showing how robots might replace nearly every kind of manned aircraft in today's arsenal. Just a few months later, the air branch lifted the (patchy) veil of secrecy surrounding its fighter-like MQ-170 spy drone, built by Lockheed Martin.

The stage has been set for an unofficial revival of J-UCAS. There are no official requirements for a new fighter drone — yet. But the Pentagon is obviously very, very interested.

As is often the case, the drama is taking place in California. Northrop's X-47 is at the Navy's China Lake base in the Mojave Desert, running ground tests prior to a planned first flight "before the end of the year." Not to be outdone by its former J-UCAS rival, two weeks ago Boeing bolted the new-and-improved X-45 to the back of a 747 for a ride from St. Louis to the Golden State's Edwards Air Force Base, where the bot will have its first flight early next year. General Atomics beat both of the bigger companies into the air: the Avenger has racked up scores of test flights at Edwards since 2009.

Years ago, one analyst called J-UCAS "the worst-funded good idea in decades." There's still not a lot of government money behind the current revival: the Navy has allocated around a billion dollars for X-47 tests; the X-45 and the Avenger are both company-funded efforts. But the idea is as good as ever. And with the impending first flights of the X-45 and X-47, killer drones are about to get a second shot at transforming aerial warfare. Danger Room will be there, every step of the way.

Photo: Boeing










http://www.wired.com/dangerroom/2010/12/killer-drones-converge-on-california-ready-to-take-off/

 

[LETHALFORCE]

http://www.spacedaily.com/reports/Japan_to_consider_using_drones_report_999.html

Japan to consider using drones: report

Japan is to consider using unmanned aircraft for surveillance flights, a newspaper reported Thursday, at a time of heightened tensions with neighbouring China and North Korea.

Japan will send military officials to the United States, which uses the cutting-edge Global Hawk high-altitude surveillance aircraft, to study how they operate and maintain the drones, the Yomiuri daily said.

The defense ministry will start fully fledged research in the next fiscal year starting April, and intends to make a final decision on whether to deploy such aircraft by the end of fiscal 2015, according to the report.

The drones can fly at an altitude of 18,000 metres (almost 60,000 feet) and have a surveillance radius of 550 kilometres in any direction, the daily said. Three of them would cover Japan and surrounding maritime territories, it said.

The report did not say where Japan might deploy the drones or say whether they would be used to overfly foreign territories.

The drones, excluding sensors, cost about 2.5 billion yen (30 million dollars) each, according to the report.

With ground facilities, initial costs are estimated to total tens of billions of yen, the Yomiuri quoted defense ministry officials saying.

Japan, in a major strategic review adopted on December 17, mentioned the possibility of deploying unmanned aircraft.

The review came in a year when Japan and China have argued bitterly over long-disputed maritime territories, and when nuclear-armed North Korea heightened regional tensions with a deadly artillery strike against the South.

 

[LETHALFORCE]

http://www.upi.com/Top_News/World-News/2010/12/31/Japan-might-purchase-drones/UPI-64111293800349/

Japan might purchase drones

TOKYO, Dec. 31 (UPI) -- Japan's Defense Ministry says it will investigate the use of high-flying surveillance drones to monitor activity in China and North Korea.

The ministry said it would send senior Self-Defense Forces officers to the United States to study how it uses and maintains the technologically advanced Northrop Grumman RQ-4 Global Hawk, the Yomiuri Shimbun reported.

The drones would enable the Japanese military to monitor the Chinese Navy's quickly growing activities in the seas around southern Japan and keep an eye on the volatile Korean Peninsula, officials said.

Drones are widely used by the United States and Britain in Afghanistan, Pakistan and Iraq and Germany was reportedly considering their use.

Japanese officials will make a decision on using the drones by the end of fiscal 2015, the newspaper said.

The Global Hawk used by the U.S. Air Force can fly at an altitude of more than 50,000 feet and, using high-performance sensors and radar, can monitor an area with a maximum radius of about 300 miles.

The drones can stay aloft about 30 hours before refueling. The cost is about $3.2 million each, not including monitoring equipment. The aircraft is about 45 feet long and has a wingspan of about 120 feet.

Japanese officials said three drones would be required to monitor sensitive areas.

 

[LETHALFORCE]

http://www.spacedaily.com/reports/US_to_deploy_new_intelligence_drone_in_Afghanistan_report_999.html

US to deploy new intelligence drone in Afghanistan: report

The US military plans to to deploy a new intelligence drone in Afghanistan, which military experts say will allow US troops to monitor much larger operational theaters than before, The Washington Post reported Sunday.

The newspaper said the airborne surveillance system is called Gorgon Stare and will be able to transmit live video images of physical movement across an entire town.

In 2010, a total of 711 international troops were killed in Afghanistan, according to independent website iCasualties -- the highest annual death toll since the war began in 2001.

The system consists of nine video cameras mounted on a remotely piloted aircraft, which can can transmit up to 65 live images to soldiers on the ground or to analysts tracking enemy movements, the paper said.

By contrast, current Air Force drones today shoot video from a single camera over a narrow area the size of a building or two, The Post noted.

"Gorgon Stare will be looking at a whole city, so there will be no way for the adversary to know what we're looking at, and we can see everything," the paper quoted Major General James Poss, the Air Force's assistant deputy chief of staff for intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance, as saying.

There are around 140,000 international troops fighting the Taliban-led insurgency in Afghanistan, around two-thirds of them from the United States.

earlier related report
US drone strikes kill 15 militants in Pakistan: officials
Miranshah, Pakistan (AFP) Jan 1, 2011 - Three US missile attacks in Pakistan's lawless tribal belt on Saturday killed at least 15 militants and destroyed a Taliban compound, local officials said.

Pakistani officials said the three strikes by unmanned drones in a single day destroyed targets in North Waziristan tribal agency along the Afghan border, a known hub of the al-Qaeda-linked Haqqani network.

They said the first two attacks took place in Mandi Khel, 25 kilometres (15 miles) north of North Waziristan's main town of Miranshah, while the third struck in Datta Khel, some 20 kilometres (13 miles) west of Miranshah.

Seven militants were killed in the first attack when US drones fired four missiles, destroying a car and a militant compound, officials said.

"Three militants were killed in the car while four were killed in the house," a security official in Peshawar told AFP.

In the second attack, a US drone fired two missiles and killed four militants, officials said.

A security official in Peshawar said militants had gathered to rescue the injured and remove the dead from the first attack when they were hit by the second.

The 11 men killed in the first two attacks were thought to be linked to Taliban commander Hafiz Gul Bahadur, security officials in Miranshah and Peshawar told AFP.

One official in Miranshah said they are seeking more information as informants in the area suspect that fighters from overseas were among the dead.

"We have received such reports that four foreigners were also killed in these fresh attacks but their identities are still not known, and we are collecting more information," the official said.

In the latest strike, US drone fired two missiles at a vehicle, killing four militants and taking the day's death toll to 15.

"Two missiles were fired by a US drone and targeted a militant vehicle. We have reports that four militants have been killed," a local security official in Miranshah told AFP.

All three drone strikes and the casualties were confirmed by a senior security official in Peshawar.

US officials say Pakistan-based militants are active in escalating a nine-year insurgency in Afghanistan, putting up a deadly fight against 140,000 US-led NATO troops there and seeking to bring down the Western-backed government in Kabul.

Washington says wiping out the militant threat in Pakistan's semi-autonomous tribal belt is vital to winning the war against the Taliban in Afghanistan and defeating Al-Qaeda.

The Haqqani network, created by Afghan warlord Jalaluddin Haqqani, fights foreign troops in Afghanistan from bases in North Waziristan. The Taliban is also dominant in the restive tribal district, as are Pakistani warlord Hafiz Gul Bahadur and his ally Maulvi Sadiq Noor.

The US does not confirm drone attacks but its military and the CIA operating in Afghanistan are the only forces that deploy the unmanned aircraft in the region.

The covert campaign last year doubled missile attacks in the tribal area, where more than 100 drone strikes killed over 670 people in 2010 compared with 45 strikes that killed 420 in 2009, according to an AFP tally.

Pakistan tacitly cooperates with the bombing campaign, which US officials say has severely weakened Al-Qaeda's leadership.

But it has stalled on launching a ground offensive in North Waziristan, saying its troops are overstretched.

The US strikes are deeply unpopular among the Pakistani public, who see military action on Pakistani soil as a breach of national sovereignty and say some attacks have killed innocent civilians.

Washington says the strikes have killed a number of high-value targets, including the former Pakistani Taliban chief Baitullah Mehsud.

 

[LETHALFORCE]

http://www.stratpost.com/french-hobbyist-augments-uav-reality

French hobbyist augments UAV reality

There's no telling what hobbies can turn into, for obsessed-enough people. Apple's Steve Jobs often refers to some of his company's lower key projects as hobbies, which seem to be part technology-demonstrators, part proofs-of-concept and all meant to answer a what-would-happen-if technological inquiry, with the idea that if you build it, maybe they will come.

Augmented reality, now available on many smartphones, is a way of instantly contextualizing visual inputs, with sound or graphics. The idea being, holding up your cellphone camera up against a building, storefront or maybe even person and getting more information thrown up for it, listed on the internet.


Imagine the potential for military applications of something like this. And then put it on a UAV (Unmanned Aerial Vehicle). This is what a French hobbyist has done, enabling the augmentation of the live video feed from a UAV with realtime onboard data like position, altitude, navigation data, battery-usage and voltage, current temperature etc. "At the moment, it is only a hobby-based project, but commercial or military applications are possible," says Fabien Blanc-Paques of his R1OSD device (the R1 stems from his son's name, Erwan, and OSD stands for On Screen Display).

The R1OSD-fitted UAV ground station, with a sun-readable LCD touchscreen and a control/data RF link, which has a maximum range of 10 kilometers.
The data is gathered from onboard sensors 'like GPS, accelerometers, magnetometers, gyroscopes, pitot tubes, processed and digitally inserted into a live video feed, then downlinked to the UAV operator or pilot'. "All the data processing and sensor fusion can provide realtime and enhanced information, like direction from a specific waypoint, direction and distance to next waypoint, warnings like critical altitude, speed etc," he says.

A view of the flight from the display at the ground station.

And how does he know it works? "I have tested this system on a UAV, which I designed myself, and on some R/C (Radio Controlled) planes converted to UAVs," says the resident of the 'French Silicon Valley' in Grenoble ('lots of electronics / IT companies here, and the area is specialized in nanotechnologies'), who's worked on this project in his free time, on his own, for the past year. It started out as a fun project without any commercial intent.
And now? "I got requests from the Bonneville Racers people who need realtime data about speed, temperatures etc over a live video feed."

But he sees lots of applications for his project, considering how, increasingly, UAVs are being seen as a low-cost, low-risk solution in many areas. Right now Fabien's working on taking the R1OSD to the next level. "I am working on a new HD version of R1OSD, that will integrate graphical virtual data over real data, fusing data from onboard sensors and also external sources. For example, if a fire brigade sends the UAV over a building under fire, the operator will be able to see the people that are trapped on the roofs thanks to thermal imaging, but he will also see where the gas valves are located as virtual data over a real video feed."
"Onboard sensors do measurement and provide realtime information about gases or toxic areas and external data can be gathered from geospatial databases that provide 3D models of the building on fire, with details like emergency exit, gas valves, etc. Then all this data is processed and superimposed over the realtime video stream from the onboard camera, providing a clear and concise view with enhanced data to the operator. This system helps in decision-making in an emergency environment," says Fabien.
That means, not only will the operator get the data from the onboard sensors right on his live video feed screen, but also data gathered from the internet. "This could also be very useful for defense," says Fabien. One can see why. "Soldiers on the ground automatically send their GPS position to the UAV. The UAV then processes and integrates all this data over the camera data and then sends a bird's-eye view of the operations that will be able to exactly see where the soldiers are."
He's aware that this technology could be subject to misuse. "With the new version, a sensitive part could be the geospatial data that is stored or transmitted to the system, as this data could leak information like spatial coordinates of goods, peoples, infrastructures, etc. The misuse of this technology could also present risks as the system features an autopilot and the UAS (Unmanned Aerial System) could autonomously drop drugs over borders, weapons over prisons etc. And this UAS is very small with a two-meter wingspan, very quiet with very low-noise electric motors and very affordable too," says Fabien, adding, "If mass produced, it would cost about a few hundred euros, most sensors included."
Fabien studied at the Universite Joseph Fourier in Grenoble and the Universite de Lyon III, pursuing electronics and IT, and has a masters degree in Advanced Information Systems. He has worked for television and telecom companies in New Zealand and at a European research center in neutron science and technology. As he mentioned, this is a hobby for him. His day job is managing research and development for a company that makes RFID (Radio Frequency IDentification) systems for retail shops. But he's worked on components for UAS before, like 'a complete sun-readable and all-weather ground station, digital diversity datalinks, UAV airframe'. He says he's nearly completed a 'full, home-made, cost-efficient UAV that could easily compete with industrial UAVs'.

 

[LETHALFORCE]

http://www.interestingfuture.com/2010/05/homemade-uav/

Homemade UAV

In the present interesting future it is possible for stupid high school children to build their own homemade UAV (s)

It's true! In high school I built my own unmanned air vehicle (UAV).

Although, I did not just sit down one day and decide to build a UAV. The homemade UAV evolved gradually. I have a hobby/habit/addiction called "radio controlled airplanes". I build and fly these a lot, expect to see some many RC airplane related articles on this blog. Anyway, people have been mounting cameras on their RC airplanes for quite some time. Recently, these cameras have become wireless. This means that a person on the ground can view live video from an RC airplane flying up to 2 miles away using a 300 dollar wireless video kit.

Let me clarify, any flying object is technically an unmanned air vehicle. But, when the term "UAV" is thrown around what people think of is a futuristic airplane that can that can carry out military reconnaissance. My creation fits both definitions.

The homemade UAV is not a completely homemade UAV. I started with a Multiplex Easy Glider kit that I modified to fit the colloquial definition of a UAV with a hobbywireless.com transmitter, receiver, and high resolution micro camera. To understand the capabilities of my mostly homemade UAV please watch the video below. The specific products I used are displayed at the end of the video.

To build a duplicate of my homemade UAV you will need:

* A Multiplex Easy Glider or other large electric RC airplane that can carry a camera payload.
* A conventional radio controlled airplane transmitter and receiver to control the airplane (Look for "RTF models", RTF means ready to fly which means that the kit comes with everything necessary to build and fly the plane)
* A micro video camera
* A wireless video transmitter
* A wireless video receiver
* A monitor (TV or computer screen with adapter) that accepts analog RCA connectors (the red white and yellow cables)

Multiplex Easy Glider Pro

Video Goggles, another monitor option

Video Transmitter

Video Receiver

Airplane radio control system: (left to right) transmitter, receiver, servo, battery

Micro Video Camera

Unfortunately my homemade UAV met an untimely end in 2007. Fortunately, I was recording.

The crash destroyed my micro video camera. I ordered a new one in the mail, it should arrive in 2-5 business days. I plan to modify my homemade UAV design. I will post pictures and build instructions in homemade UAV part 2.

UAV made by a high school student

 

[Kunal Biswas]

I was thinking CRPF need those small uav made by DRDO?

With combination of UAV, armored vehicles and motars its helpful....

 

[LETHALFORCE]

http://www.dnaindia.com/mumbai/repo...lster-security-of-indias-west-coast_149544144

Unmanned drones to bolster security of India's west coast

The western naval command of the Indian Navy would get its first Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) squadron commissioned at Porbandar on Monday, bolstering India's coastal security.

The UAV squadron is said to have a fleet of unmanned Israeli Searchers and Heron aircraft. They will be controlled from the UAV station being set up at Porbandar.

The UAVs will be used for Medium Range Long Endurance (MRLE) operations in the seas and carry out surveillance and monitoring operations with a capacity to fly continuously for up to 50 hours and at altitudes of up to 35,000 feet.

The payload of these aircraft would be around 250kg. The drones can also be used on the high seas, as they can be controlled from warships.

The UAVs would navigate using a GPS system and the flight would be pre-progarmmed. The take-offs and landings can be controlled manually too.

The surveillance and monitoring would be done using sensors, infrared and visible light surveillance systems. Radars installed in the aircraft will be used to identify objects in the sea and also on ground.

The payload sensors would send real-time information to the control station using data links or via satellites. The information will help operators take action during emergencies or for sea rescue.

A senior defence personnel said, "UAV and drones like the Searcher and Heron aircraft are useful for conducting reconnaissance, as they can fly for long hours if the payload is less. If the UAV is carrying only communication devices and has gone intelligence gathering, it can fly along the Gujarat-Maharashtra coastline and over the high seas."

The Indian Navy got its first UAV squadron a few years ago at the southern naval command headquarters in Kochi.

The governor of Gujarat will be the chief guest for the commissioning function at Porbandar on Monday.

 

[neo29]

SMEs ready with India's First hand-launched mini-UAV— E-5

Within two years of developing the Vihang Netra, India's first Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) in the private sector built for the Snow and Avalanche Study Establishment, a DRDO lab, a conglomeration of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) is now ready with the country's first, hand-launched mini-UAV— E-5.

Pune-based DEMA Mechatronic Technologies Pvt. Ltd (DMT) the manufacturing arm of the Defence Electronics Manufacturers Association (DEMA), which played a crucial role in the Vihang Netra exercise, has come up with the E-5, which was successfully tested on December 27 at the Gliding Centre in Hadapsar.

"This is the first time a UAV has been developed by a professional body and that too for being offered off-the-shelf. Traditionally, defence procurement is a laid down procedure that involves placing requirements followed by research, development and handing over. This time, we decided to develop the product and approach the Armed Forces with it. The UAV is ready and depending upon the end-user, which in this case could be the Armed Forces as well as paramilitary Forces, we would customise the product further," said D S Kamlapurkar, former president, DEMA. With a packing set that weighs 2.5 kg, the UAV can be backpacked and hand-launched. It's battery operated with a maximum speed of 50 kmph and can be airborne for 45 minutes. "The maximum altitude is 1,500 metres. We have equipped it with a way point based GPS navigation, 2.4 GHz and 900 Mhz radio links and day/night use CCD camera. Given the size and ease of operations, this is the most suitable option for the Armed Forces to survey a region, carry out anti-insurgency missions"¦customs and coast guard missions, police and homeland security and so on. Applications such as fire fighting missions or pipeline and industrial monitoring can find use in a civilian set-up as well," added Kamlapurkar.

The UAV can have extended range, endurance, night vision camera — the first-ever in the country — pan-and-tilt camera and digital link, according to Kamlapurkar, who added, "The UAV that has a range of five km, sends back data to the ground station"¦ There are options such as way point navigation, abort mission, in-flight way point changes, hovering around target, real time target co-ordinate transmission and so on."

With test flights to prove the software and hardware currently on, DMT plans to launch the product in the market in three-four months. Priced Rs 30-35 lakh per unit, it consists of three such aircraft and a ruggadised laptop groundstation, the organisers are targeting a sale of 200-300 units in five years.

http://idrw.org/?p=2372

 

[neo29]

Three groups to fight for Anglo-French UCAV contract

Three aerospace groups are competing to design and build the next generation of unmanned military attack aircraft for a £600 million ($952 million) proposal launched jointly by Britain and France.The groups involved in the bid were BAE Systems partnered with France's Dassault Systems, a joint bid by Cobham and General Atomics and, thirdly, Airbus-owner EADS, which held partnership discussions with the missiles group MBDA and France's Thales.

The UAV (unmanned aerial vehicle) must be able to perform civilian duties, such as coastal surveillance or providing security and intelligence, as well as having offensive capability, the UK government said.

Dassault/BAE is likely to propose BAE's Mantis UAV, while EADS will put forward its Talarion drone and Cobham/General Atomics will enter its Predator model.

An industry source said British and French forces want a more advanced aircraft than the Royal Air Force's Reaper UAV attack model, produced by General Atomics.

http://idrw.org/?p=2366

 

[LETHALFORCE]

http://www.spacedaily.com/reports/IAI_delivers_12_UAVs_to_Russia_in_key_deal_999.html

IAI delivers 12 UAVs to Russia in key deal

Israeli Aerospace Industries has delivered a dozen unmanned aerial vehicles to Russia under a $400 million contract that will eventually allow Moscow to manufacture advanced drones that will significantly enhance its military capabilities.

The delivery of the short-range Bird-Eye 400 and I-View Mk 150 aircraft, plus the longer-range Searcher II, in recent weeks is part of an Israeli effort to encourage the Russians not to provide Iran and Syria with advanced weapons systems that could threaten the Jewish state, The Jerusalem Post reported.

"It is reasonable Â"¦ to argue that Israel viewed UAV sales and joint military technology activity as a means of bringing influence to bear on Moscow," Jane's Defense Weekly observed.

The UAVs delivered by state-owned IAI, flagship of Israel's high-tech defense industry, stemmed from a ground-breaking April 2009 contract worth $53 million. That marked Russia's first purchase of a foreign weapons system.

That, in turn, led to the $400 million deal between IAI and Russia's Oboronprom OPK Group in October 2010 under which the Russians will independently manufacture the Heron 1, one of Israel's most advanced UAVs capable of strategic missions.

As part of the deal, IAI trained some 50 Russian pilots at its main facility near Ben Gurion International Airport near Tel Aviv.

It isn't clear whether IAI will provide Russia with the Heron TP, or Eitan, a 4.5-ton aerial titan that is understood to be able to carry air-to-ground missiles.

That seems unlikely, in the short term at least, given the Heron's strategic capabilities, which Israel is reluctant to share. But JDW says Moscow has expressed an interest in the Heron TP.

The craft is 79 feet long and has a wingspan of 86 feet and can stay aloft for 20 hours at high altitudes, making it capable of reaching Iran from Israel.

UAVs have become a major export of Israel's defense industry.

"Israel is the world's leading exporter of drones, with more than 1,000 sold in 42 countries," Jacques Chemia, chief engineer of IAI's UAV division, said recently.

Moscow's decision last June to scrap an $800 million contract to provide Iran with powerful S-300PMU air-defense missile systems clearly has helped Israel overcome its reservations about providing technology to Russia.

Tehran wanted the systems to protect its nuclear installations, which the Israelis have threatened to attack. The S-300s would have been a formidable obstacle for Israeli warplanes.

Israel wants Moscow to ditch plans to sell Syria the advanced supersonic P-800 Yakhont cruise missile that could pose a series threat to Israel's navy, particularly if they are passed on to Hezbollah in Lebanon.

From the Russian point of view, the deals with Israel underline how Moscow is accelerating efforts to obtain major military platforms from the West, a fundamental revision of Russian military procurement strategy.

Securing licenses from foreign defense manufacturers, such as IAI, to produce the equipment in Russia is significant as it will bolster the Kremlin's plans to revive its moribund defense industry over the next decade.

"While design bureaus and major builders have experience building major platforms such as fighter aircraft, tanks and submarines, they are hopelessly behind European and U.S. manufacturers in their ability to produce modern electronics and advanced equipment," according to an Oxford Analytica assessment in August.

The Russian air force received no new aircraft from 1994-2003 and only three since then. These were early models of the T-50 fifth-generation fighter that was supposed to revitalize the air force by 2015. But because of design problems, particularly with the power plant, the air force is unlikely to start taking delivery of the first jets until 2018 at the earliest.

Russia has been unable to get off the ground with advanced UAVs, a shortcoming that became all too evident during the brief 2008 war with the former Soviet republic of Georgia.

It was Georgia's use of long-endurance Hermes 450 tactical spy drones, built by Israel's Elbit Defense Systems, to provide battlefield reconnaissance that caught Moscow's interest.

This issue was sufficiently sensitive that the Israelis were uneasy about to selling UAVs to Russia, particularly since Moscow was providing advanced weapons systems to Iran and Syria.

Washington was concerned enough about the proposed UAV sales that it "requested clarifications" from Israel's Defense Ministry, the liberal daily Haaretz reported in June.

 

[Armand2REP]

It really makes me sick that France has an operational domestic MALE that is passed over for military use but is good enough for domestic security.

 

[nrj]

nEUROn UCAV demonstrator materialises

Saab's nEUROn fuselage sections will soon be transported to Istres.

After some six years of planning, designing and testing, the ambitious programme to develop a European stealth unmanned combat air vehicle (UCAV) is taking shape. This week, Saab officially delivered the front and central fuselage sections for the nEUROn technology demonstrator to the project's prime contractor, Dassault Aviation.

The French company had received the contract with the country's defence procurement agency, DGA, in February 2006 to develop and manufacture a UCAV demonstrator. Since the official launch of the programme, six European partners have joined forces on the political, as well as industrial side: France (Dassault Aviation, Thales), Sweden (Saab), Italy (Finmeccanica), Spain (EADS CASA), Greece (Hellenic Aerospace Industry) and Switzerland (RUAG); the DGA acts as the program executive agency on behalf of the six nations.

After having completed design reviews of all major nEUROn systems in 2008 and undergoing wind tunnel tests by RUAG, the developers determined the final shape of the future aircraft. Flight tests with the similar-shaped Dassault AVE-C unmanned aircraft supported the development of the nEUROn's planned remote controlled and autonomous capabilities.

Based on these findings, the project could further proceed to the production of key structural elements by Hellenic Aerospace Industry (HAI), which is responsible for the nozzle and aft fuselage section, as well as by Saab, for the front and central fuselage sections. Further, in 2009 Dassault reported that the experimental development center at Dassault Aviation's Argenteuil plant produced an inlet demonstrator, while the company's Biarritz plant created a complete leading edge section for testing purposes. In particular, the stealth requirements, demanding very tight tolerances in all surface elements, represent a tremendous technological challenge.


FIRST STEPS IN CREATING THE nEUROn

With the delivery of the large fuselage sections, Saab accomplished an important milestone within the achievement of a UCAV demonstrator, scheduled to perform its maiden flight in mid-2012. Ground tests, as well as the first engine run-up, are planned to be carried out in late 2011 at the Istres-Le Tubé Air Base. Being a Main National Subcontractor (MNSC) within the European aerospace project, Saab claims 25 per cent of the development activities. According to the Scandinavian company, it mainly focuses on areas such as aerostructures, avionics, airworthiness, fuel systems, autonomy, stealth-related elements and mission software for the nEUROn.

While the rear fuselage section was delivered by HAI in mid-January, the fuselage sections manufactured by Saab will soon be transported from Saab's Linköping plant to Istres. At the Dassault plant in southern France, all sections of the nEUROn demonstrator will be integrated into the overall system and allow the programme to receive an even more distinct shape during the upcoming months.

According to Dassault Aviation, the schedule for the remaining key elements is as follows:
"¢ the ordnance release pantograph by RUAG will arrive end of February;
"¢ the two half wings by EADS-CASA will arrive beginning of March;
"¢ the two weapon bay doors by Alenia will arrive end of March;
"¢ the three landing gear doors by Saab will arrive in April;
"¢ several stealth-related parts by Dassault Aviation will be delivered in January and March.


A PAN-EUROPEAN PROJECT

The basic dimensions of the aircraft are already known, and corresponding mock-ups have been on display at various European trade fairs and air shows. The nEUROn will be 10 metres long with a 12-metres wingspan and a weight of approximately seven tons. Due to its aerodynamic and stealth requirements, the future UCAV shows many parallels to US concepts, such as the Phantom Ray (Boeing; based on X-45C) and the X-47B (Northrop Grumman), being designed as a flying wing with its intake on top of the fuselage and having a flat belly.

The system is intended to provide unmanned capabilities that meet the scope of manned aircraft, in terms of range, payloads and operability, to some extent. One of its most significant characteristics will be the ability to carry precision air-to-ground munitions in its dual internal weapons bay, allowing the UCAV to stealthily penetrate enemy air defences and strike targets well behind enemy lines.

In addition to the technological challenge of creating a state-of-the-art UCAV system, the DGA and Dassault Aviation claim that the nEUROn project will help to further consolidate the pan-European efforts within the military aviation industry. Indeed, it may be an important move to sustain a competitive European aerospace industry, which suffers from shrinking defence budgets and the lack of perspectives with regard to long-term next-generation fighter programmes on the European continent.

Defpro

 

[chex3009]

Secret Projects - RQ-170 Sentinel

The Secret Projects forum has leaked a new series of images of the US Air Force's Lockheed Martin RQ-170 Sentinel. One of the images for the first time offers the clearest view yet of the RQ-170's nose, which reveals inlet shape as an isosceles trapezoid. The basic shape is not uncommon for such flying-wing, stealthy aircraft. The inlet aperture of the MiG Skat, for example, is very similar. But it differs greatly from the inverted-W shaping of the Boeing Phantom Ray and Northrop Grumman X-47B.

http://weapons.technology.youngester.com/2011/01/secret-projects-rq-170-sentinel.html

 

[Kunal Biswas]

Saab has finished construction and testing of the first hull of the Neuron VLO UCAV prototype. It will now be forwarded to France for assembly with the rest of the contributions from the partner nations.

http://www.nyteknik.se/nyheter/fordon_motor/flygplan/article3077925.ece

MP.net.........................

 

[LETHALFORCE]

http://www.spacedaily.com/reports/Bat-winged_drone_bomber_in_test_flight_US_Navy_999.html

Bat-winged drone bomber in test flight

A robotic, bat-winged bomber designed to take off from a US aircraft carrier has passed its first test in a debut flight in California, the US Navy said Saturday.

The X-47B jet, which looks like a smaller version of the B-2 stealth bomber, stayed in the air for 29 minutes and climbed to 5,000 feet in a test flight on Friday at Edwards Air Force Base, according to the Navy and defense contractor Northrop Grumman.

Military leaders see the plane as part of a new generation of drones that would be able to evade radar and fly at much faster speeds than the current fleet of propeller-driven Predators and Reapers used in the war in Afghanistan.

"Today we got a glimpse towards the future as the Navy's first-ever tailless, jet-powered unmanned aircraft took to the skies," Captain Jaime Engdahl, a program manager for the warplane, said in a statement.

Northrop is building the navy bomber under a $636 million contract awarded in 2007.

With no pilot on board, the experimental aircraft was operated by a joint Navy and Northrop team on the ground.

The plane "flew a racetrack pattern over the dry lakebed with standard-rate turns," the Navy said.

It will be years before the X-47B joins the naval air fleet, with the first tests on a carrier scheduled for 2013, Northrop said in a release.