Terminator Times #30

Drones (unmanned aerial vehicles):

Australia will equip its troops with small unmanned aerial systems.

Belarus is on a roll and developed a VTOL UCAV version of its IN SKY robo copter and offering a lot more options for UAV customers.

China's Wing-Loong II has taken its maiden flight.

Thales details its delivery to France of its Spy'Ranger.

Germany will be acquiring the Triton UAV since the Euro Hawk program fell apart.

Germany will also move ahead with its Heron TP purchase.

The German Herons will be controlled from a base in Israel.

India's second Rostum2 drone prototype has been unveiled.

Israel's Meteor has secured the first orders for its Impact drone.

Israel's UVision has unveiled a new version of its Hero loitering munition/suicide drone.

The Japanese scrambled F-15s when a Chinese drone was spotted near the disputed islands.

North Korea is claiming a Heron UAV entered its airspace multiple times.

Russia is supposedly building an advanced medium class drone.

Russia's Orion drone has been spotted and it looks like a GNAT 750.

Russia's HeliRussia is testing a tilt rotor UAV.

Saudi Arabia has unveiled its own UCAV.

Somali police are getting drones to combat terrorists.

Turkey's Anka UCAV is undergoing weapons trials.

DARPA has down selected for Phase 2 of the Gremlins program.

DARPA is trying to get smaller UAVs to do more.

The USAF AFRL is testing a multi sensor pod for the Reaper.

F-16s converted to drones have been testing jamming techniques with the F-35s.

The media got a tour of the RQ-4 drone in Japan.

US Air Force Reaper Drones as close air support aircraft?

The Reaper has been armed with the JDAM bomb now.

The USAF released an image of Kratos' planned prototype for the LCAAT.

THE US Army is seeking a medium sized cargo drone of their own.

The US Army is looking at how to improve its MQ-1C Grey Eagles.

The USMC MUX Program is moving forward.

Piasecki is targeting the USMC's MUX cargo drone with an upgraded version of its ARES demonstrator.

The US Navy is planning a demonstration of updating target info for its FireScout VTOL UCAV.

The USN is going through the last steps necessary before sending its RFP for the MQ-25 Stingray.

US SOCOM is considering what to do about drones.

Aerovironment has unveiled its Snipe nano quadcopter.  it has already delivered 20 of them to a unnamed US government costumer.

KRATOS has unveiled its latest UAV.

Lockheed's Fury is being tested extensively in the ramp up to its LRIP.

Pulse Aerospace has launched its Radius 65 UAV.

QinetiQ NA has proposed its Titan UGV for the US Army.

Terminators (Unmanned Ground Vehicles):

Belarus has shared more details of its antitank UGV, the Bogomol.

The US Army talked about its advances in small ground robotics.

ARA has acquired Neya.

Robo Boats (Unmanned surface vehicles):

The Chinese have started showcasing some of their new USVs.

The US Navy has started experimenting with defensive swarms of USVs.

Robo Subs (unmanned underwater vehicles):

The USN's NUWC is testing a new mine hunting UUV.

L3 acquired Open Water Power, a UUV builder for the USN.

META:

Britain wants to develop unmanned logistics vehicles, aircraft and ground.

France's ECA is looking at unmanned teaming for mine and explosives clearing.

Amphibious operations about the US Marine Corps will require unmanned components to succeed.

Manned, Unmannted Team (MUMT) seeks to expand how unmanned systems are used.

US Navy wants unmanned standards implemented.

Terminator Times #21

Drones:

DARPA's Gremlins program gets profiled.

US nuclear sites are getting a drone defense.

USAF is worried about drone strikes in the US.

The USAF is getting new sensors for its Global Hawks.

USAF F-16 drones have reached IOC.

US Army is looking at its next VTOL being optionally manned.

US Army wants a Shadow UAV equivalent that is runway free.

US Army is looking at a laser on a Stryker to shoot down UAVs.

The US Navy has awarded Lockheed and Boeing risk reduction contracts for the MQ-25 program.

The US Navy has also approved LRIP for the Triton.

One of the USN Fire Scout's designated a target for a Blackhawk.

The USN ordered 10 more Fire Scouts.

There are cracks in some of the Fire Scouts.

The USMC may soon use a VTOL drone swarm as a replacement for the Cobra and to accompany the V-22s off their jeep carriers.  Bell is proposing the V-247.  Bell is also trying to sell the tilt rotor drone to the US army.

The USMC is testing out the Black Hornet UAV.

The USMC tested a communications pod on a Reaper UAV.

USMC rifle squads will be getting drones.

Brazil is being offered local production of the Heron UAV.

Britain needs to sort out its 'killer drone' policies.

Britain wants to place British weapons on its Protector (Reaper) drones.

Europe has started studying its needs for a MALE UAV.

Iran claims to have made two UCAVs based on the lost RQ-170

(and some).

Kazahkstan is looking at starting UAV assembly in 2017.

Nigeria is ordering UAVs.

South Korea is developing a laser weapon system to counter drones.

3 drone strikes in a week in Yemen.

ApolloShield has developed an anti drone system.

CACI has its own counter drone system.

The Certifiable Predator B nears its test flight.

Drone Defense has a counter UAV system, too.

Korean Air and Boeing have teamed up to make a unmanned gunship of the MD500 helicopter.
 Schiebel and Diehl are extending their UAV cooperation.

Northrop Grumman has an anti UAV system.

Uvision and Firstec are lobbying their Hero 30 loitering munition (kamikaze drone) to South Korea.

Unmanned Ground Vehicles:

The US Army is working on self driving trucks.

The LA sheriff's office used a bot to disarm a man in a standoff.

South Korea is pushing forward with its unmanned combat ground vehicle program.

Hanwha Tech unveiled its design for the South Korean program.

Harris' bomb squad robot has a deft touch.

Roboteam has new capabilities.

Qinetiq NA unveils new UGV. 

Unmanned Underwater Vehicle:

A Lockheed UUV launched a UAV.

The MUSCLE UUV...

Software Bots:

Command and control is one area that is hoped that software bots can help with.

AI for the USAF!

META:

The first database of autonomous weapons has been compiled for the public.

USMC combat tactics are evolving in the face of robopocalypse: bayonets and drones.

Is this the future of ground combat in view of the robopocalypse?

What could the force structure look like for the US Navy when its unmanned centric?

Thales wants the Royal Navy to test out its unmanned systems.

The US is pushing for limits on UAV exports.

Terminator Times #13

Drones:

An AI developed to simulate fighter combat successfully took down a very accomplished fighter pilot every time in a simulator.

Smaller drones for tactical operations are coming.

Latvia has cleared its army for shooting down any UAVs over their bases.

DARPA has awarded two contracts to for its swarming UAV CODE program. 

Airborn Concepts unveiled its new UAV plans. 

France has called for final offers in its DRAC UAV replacement program.

Argentina has cancelled its SARA UAV program.

The British are transferring control of its Watchkeeper UAVs to the helicopter command.

General Atomics is flying an improved Avenger drone in October.

The Wing Loong UAV is confirmed to be in Pakistan because one crashed and folks took pictures.  Pakistan has stated the UAV was on an experimental flight.

The reasons for two American drone crashes have been IDed.

US Navy's Triton variant of the Global Hawk has sent full motion video to a P-8 antisub plane.

The US Navy's Fire Scout robo helicopters have been used to hunt terrorists in Africa.

Here is what the US Navy wants its first carrier borne drone to do.

MQ-9s will be used in the first trilateral ballistic missile defense exercises off Hawaii between the US, South Korea and Japan.

China has unveiled their robo helicopter can carry & use antitank missiles.

India has requested a quote for 22 Guardian (Predator derived maritime patrol drones) UAVs.

Northrop has teamed with another company to improve their UAVs.

Northrop will also upgrade the SIGINT payload for the Global Hawk.

Raytheon's anti UAV system is getting a lot of interest as well.

Lockheed's counter battery radar can now detect UAVs.

OSCE showed pictures of its drones under attack in Ukraine.

Robo Subs:

GM & the US Navy are working on hydrogen fuel cell powered UUVs.

Robo Boats:

Elbit systems has test fired torpedoes from their unmanned boat (USV).

Unmanned Ground Vehicles:

Gabon has ordered some UGVs. 

Raytheon has a sensor designed to find IEDs mounted on a bot. 

Northrop's new explosive disposal bot has passed the USN's CDR.

Tecdron showed off its armed UGVs. 

Elbit outlined its UGV plans.

The armed bot Dogo is getting more press.

Software Bots:

The US Naby is studying bots with social skills.

META:

The third offset for the US military gets delved into.

No Robo Copters for Evac'ing or Transporting US Army Soldiers

The US Army has no plans to ferry troops into war zones aboard unmanned helicopters, but will push autonomous and remote-controlled flight technology for cargo delivery, although it's not a near-term priority, service officials say.

Just as the US Air Force and Navy are grappling with the idea of sending unmanned fighter jets into battle, the army faces similar ingrained preconceptions about the role of pilots in combat.

“The questions about unmanned helicopters with crews in the back; there’s a level of trust there we won’t break,” the army’s capability manager for unmanned aircraft systems Col Paul Cravey tells Flightglobal in an interview. “We’re not putting soldiers in the back of helicopters without our aviators flying in the front.”

Unmanned helicopters are often touted as the ideal solution for breaking into hostile territory without risking the lives of aircrews, but these concepts do not extend to rescuing or transporting soldier, the army claims.

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MQ-8C FireScout Completed Operational Assessment

The MQ-8C Fire Scout completed a three week operational assessment period Nov. 20 at Naval Base Ventura County at Point Mugu, California.

The OA included 11 flights totaling 83.4 flight hours where Fire Scout was tested against maritime and surveyed land targets to assess system performance, endurance and reliability of the unmanned helicopter.

“MQ-8C is meeting or exceeding its performance objectives and will deliver greater warfighting capabilities to the fleet in the future,” said Capt Jeff Dodge, Fire Scout’s program manager for Multi-Mission Tactical Unmanned Aerial Systems.

The MQ-8C will provide twice the endurance and three times the payload as the existing MQ-8B. It has a range of 150 nautical miles and a payload capacity of more than 700 pounds which provides unique situational awareness and precision target support for the Navy on land and at-sea with its multiple intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) capabilities.

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China's TD220 VTOL Drone

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MQ-8C Fire Scout Drone Helicopter's First Take off and Landing on a US Navy Destroyer

Fire Scout makes it look easy to take off from a destroyer. It’s not.

In video released today (above), the MQ-8C helicopter takes off from the destroyer Jason Dunham with its eyes closed — or rather with its cockpit windows painted over, because there’s nobody inside. Though derived from the widespread Bell 407, the Northrop Grumman MQ-8C is a drone. This month’s tests are the first time the unmanned helicopter has taken off from a Navy ship at sea, and the first time any unmanned helicopter of any kind has taken off from a destroyer. The earlier MQ-8B version of the Fire Scout has already seen service on Navy frigates and Littoral Combat Ships, but the C-model is a much bigger aircraft and the Jason Dunham is a much bigger vessel.

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Kamov to Fly Ka-175 Helicopter UCAV

Kamov have revealed details of their new Ka-175 vertical takeoff and landing reconnaissance and strike unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), which could make its maiden flight within a year.

Kamov's general designer, Sergey Mikheyev, provided details on the Ka-175 at a conference titled 'Breakthrough technologies in creating UAVs for the Russian Defence Ministry'.

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Whither the KMAX Unmanned Helicopter?

A robot helicopter that can carry three tons of cargo, the Marine Corps K-MAX certainly has the cool factor. But does it have a future?

After a six-month pilot project in Afghanistan got extended into a 33-month deployment that made 2,250 tons of deliveries, the two experimental aircraft have come home. Prime contractor Lockheed Martin is looking to the energy industry and — if export authorities approve — foreign military sales. Members of Congress have campaigned for K-MAX to become an official program of record for the US military, and Naval Air Systems Command (NAVAIR) is now working with the Marine Corps on formal requirements and new concepts of operations, with demonstration flights likely next year. Lockheed is even planning a demonstration later this year in which the unmanned helicopter will work with unmanned trucks. For now, though, the two robocopters will sit in storage while humans study the deployment.

The crucial question for K-MAX is the same one as for so many other innovative items of equipment rushed into service in the last 13 grueling years: Is it just a useful niche capability for a war that’s almost over or something relevant to a range of future missions?

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US Military Arming More Drones

The U.S. Defense Department wants to arm more drones with lightweight, precision-guided weapons to support a larger range of combat missions.

As the war in Afghanistan ends and new threats emerge in the Asia-Pacific region, the Pentagon is considering adapting multiple weapons for drones, including the Cold War-era Hydra 70 rocket and the Laser Homing Attack or Anti-Tank Missile, or LAHAT, according to its latest report on the future of unmanned systems.

“Unmanned systems can be used in significantly different operating and threat conditions than manned platforms, come in a much wider range of classes and sizes than manned systems, can exhibit greater persistence and endurance than manned systems, and have the potential to support a large range of mission sets,” the recently released report states.

The 168-page document, “Unmanned Systems Integrated Roadmap: FY2013-2038,” outlines the department’s long-term strategy for adopting the technology and was approved by Frank Kendall, the Pentagon’s top weapons buyer, and Navy Adm. James Winnefeld, vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

The Pentagon plans to spend almost $24 billion on unmanned air, ground and maritime systems over the next five years through fiscal 2018, according to the document. While research and development funding for drones is expected to fall by $1.3 billion — more than a third — from fiscal 2013 to fiscal 2014, overall spending on the technology is expected to total at least $4.1 billion in the fiscal year that began Oct. 1.

As the department develops systems that can operate in contested areas such as the Asia-Pacific, it’s trying to find ways to arm its nearly 11,000 aerial drones with existing weapons.

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