Training
AAI Logistics & Technical Services, an operating unit of Textron Systems, a Textron Inc. company, announced that it has earned the highly selective Sweden Armed Forces Technical School maintenance training provider certification. It is the first unmanned aircraft system (UAS) training provider to have earned this designation, and only the
Applications & Testing & Experience
The US Marine Corps flew two unmanned K-MAX helicopter test flights out to one of the forward operating bases in Afghanistan without a load on December 15 and 16. Lockheed Martin’s Jeffrey Brown teold Aviation Week. “These flights were test flights in preparation for sustained operations.” Built as a
Accident Reporting
Take everything that Iran says about its captured US drone with a grain of salt. But its new claim that it spoofed the drone’s navigational controls isn’t implausible. It’s possible to spoof unencrypted civilian GPS systems. But military GPS receivers, such as the one likely installed on
Military UAS
An internal review of the US Air Force's intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) capabilities indicates the need for unmanned aircraft systems that can survive in contested airspace, as well as improved data processing and greater capacity for movement and dissemination of that data, according to a senior service
Applications & Testing & Experience
Sweden's CybAero AB, in collaboration with the Norwegian Coast Guard and Coastal Agency, has conducted a series of flights with its unmanned helicopter, the APID 60, in winds up to gale force. The flights took place over the Arctic Ocean, near the Norwegian village of Vardø, on behalf
News
A former contract worker for Insitu pleaded not guilty in Federal Court last week to stealing a maintenance manual for top-secret UAS technology. Stephen Marty Ward of Palmyra, Ind., is accused of duplicating or downloading the manual for an Insitu Inc. UAS while working as a technical writer, then offering
Military UAS
A new Pentagon study shows that almost 30 percent of UAS pilots surveyed suffer from what the military calls "burnout." It's the first time the military has tried to measure the psychological impact of waging a "remote-controlled war." Around 1,100 Air Force pilots
Military UAS
“Grusha” unmanned aircraft produced by the Izhmash concern have entered the inventory of Russia’s Baltic Fleet. Industrial experts state that the Grusha meets the global standards set for of mini-class unmanned aircraft. Their main functions are surveillance and reconnaissance up to a range of about 10 km. The new
News
Iran's Minister of Defence, Brigadier General Ahmad Vahidi says that the country is manufacturing new models of unmanned combat aircraft. “We have had advanced capabilities in terms of unmanned aircraft; with regard to combat drones we have had a number of models, and we also have some models
Regulatory Matters
Unmanned aircraft systems are a step closer to being more widely used in the United States as a result of legislation Congress passed on 15 Dec. (H.R. 1540), which calls for the creation of six UAS test sites around the country. AUVSI Chairman of the Board Peter Bale says,
Data Links & Communications
Rockwell Collins is collaborating with the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) to develop an unmanned aircraft system (UAS) control and non-payload communications (CNPC) data link that will eventually enable unmanned aircraft to safely operate in the national airspace. “The reason we were selected is because we’re one of
Data Links & Communications
Pakistan has been able to hack UAS technology to the extent that it can now command a transgressing aircraft to land in Pakistan, reliable sources told the Pakistan Observer. This achievement by Pakistan is utmost significant amid desperate scenario that emerged as a result of attacks inside Pakistan by the