AeroVironment, Monrovia, Calif., was awarded a $4.6 million contract from the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) to develop a small Unmanned Aircraft System (UAS) capable of performing “hover/perch and stare” missions. The Stealthy, Persistent, Perch and Stare (SP2S) UAS will be based on the company's Wasp UAS, a one-pound, 29-inch wingspan battery-powered air vehicle. The goal of the new system is to develop the technology to enable a new generation of perch-and-stare micro air vehicles capable of flying to difficult targets, landing on and securing to a “perch” position, conducting sustained, perch-and-stare surveillance missions and then re-launching from its perch and returning to its home base, the company said.
Croatia Airlines Selects Rockwell Collins HGS
Croatia Airlines selected Rockwell Collins’ HGS Head-up Guidance System for installation on its fleet of four Bombardier Q400s plus two aircraft options. Financial terms of the contract were not disclosed. Rockwell Collins said the HGS allows Category III approach and landing down to 600 feet Runway Visual Range (RVR), low-visibility takeoff down to 300 feet and lower-than-standard Category I approach minima as low as 1600 feet.
Cover Story Sensor Sense
Two new armed reconnaissance, surveillance and target acquisition platforms will enhance the situational awareness and lethality of U.S. Army aviation brigades by carrying the Common Sensor Payload (CSP). The General Atomics Aeronautical Systems MQ-1C Sky...
Frank Colucci
Feature Stories Office In the Sky
Once seen as optional capabilities, access to the Internet, e-mail, corporate Virtual Private Networks (VPN), telephone, fax and other office amenities increasingly are considered must-have features for business aircraft, easily turning the bizjet cabin into...
Emily Feliz
RCAT: Testbed for Nextgen
One of the most important aspects of the Next Generation Air Transportation System (NextGen) is ensuring that Department of Defense (DoD) and civil aviation can operate seamlessly in both national and international airspace. Based on net-centric operations...
David Van Cleave, The MITRE Corp.
Inflight Entertainment
Most business sectors within avionics typically see one or two major technology and/or customer demand trends in any given year. But with as many as three or four distinct trends and developments this year within the $1.5 billion worldwide inflight...
Barry Rosenberg
