Aurora Excalibur UAS Makes First Flight
Aurora Flight Sciences Corporation (Aurora) announced today that it has successfully completed the first flight of the Excalibur Unmanned Aircraft System (UAS).
The vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL) turbine hybrid electric unmanned air vehicle is the first of a new class of tactical unmanned combat air vehicles. The first flight took place at Aberdeen Proving Grounds, Maryland on June 24, 2009.
“It was a flawless first flight with a crisp takeoff and perfect landing. In flight, the hover stability and heading control performance were excellent,” affirmed Aurora President, John Langford.
Excalibur’s unique configuration enables both VTOL and high-speed flight modes at speeds up to 400 knots; thereby providing the Warfighter with a survivable capability for quick response weapons delivery or logistics resupply from remote, austere forward operating bases or from air cable ships operating in the littorals.
The Excalibur proof-of-concept vehicle combines jet-borne vertical lift with three electric lift fans to provide attitude control and a significant fraction of hover thrust.
The fully autonomous vehicle management and flight control systems simplify the operator task allowing operators to focus on mission objectives. Aurora anticipates a series of flying qualities and performance testing to verify low speed operations, transition modes, and high speed flight regimes in the near future.
Mission planning and operator command and control was achieved using Aurora’s portable Ground Control Station (GCS) architecture that features STANAG 4586 compliance and ensures down stream interoperability with the Army’s One System compatible GCS.
The Excalibur UAS was developed by Aurora for the US Army Aviation Applied Technology Directorate and the Office of Naval Research.
More from Uncrewed Vehicles
-
![Cummings Aerospace showcases Hellhound loitering munition designed for US Army’s LASSO programme (video)]()
Cummings Aerospace showcases Hellhound loitering munition designed for US Army’s LASSO programme (video)
Cummings Aerospace presented its turbojet-powered Hellhound loitering munition at SOF Week 2025, offering a man-portable solution aligned with the US Army’s LASSO requirements.
-
![SOF Week 2025: PDW unveils attritable FPV drone for SOF operations at scale]()
SOF Week 2025: PDW unveils attritable FPV drone for SOF operations at scale
PDW has revealed its Attritable Multirotor First Person View drone at SOF Week 2025, offering special operations forces a low-cost, rapidly deployable platform for strike and ISR missions, inspired by battlefield lessons from Ukraine.
-
![SOF Week 2025: Teledyne FLIR white paper provides guidance on reusable loitering munitions]()
SOF Week 2025: Teledyne FLIR white paper provides guidance on reusable loitering munitions
Teledyne FLIR is highlighting the emerging requirements for 'recoverable and re-usable' loitering munitions across the contemporary operating environment during this week’s SOF Week conference in Tampa, Florida.
-
![SOF Week 2025: Kraken Technology group debuts K3 Scout USV in North America]()
SOF Week 2025: Kraken Technology group debuts K3 Scout USV in North America
High-performance maritime industry player Kraken Technology Group, based in the UK, has used the SOF Week conference in Tampa, Florida this week to debut its K3 Scout uncrewed surface vessel (USV) to the North American market.
-
![Palladyne AI and Red Cat to demonstrate capabilities for autonomous drone swarms to the US military]()
Palladyne AI and Red Cat to demonstrate capabilities for autonomous drone swarms to the US military
Red Cat and Palladyne AI recently conducted a cross-platform collaborative flight involving three diverse heterogeneous drones.
-
![Jammer resistant drone designs spark search for countermeasures]()
Jammer resistant drone designs spark search for countermeasures
The Russia-Ukraine conflict has driven another stage of evolution for drones and the counter measures to defend against them.
