Aurora wins AFRL contract
Aurora Flight Sciences has been awarded an Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) Rapid Reaction Technology Office contract to supply the Skate Small Unmanned Aerial System (SUAS) for the Urban Beat Cop (UBC) programme. The programme will see SUAVs demonstrated to perform law enforcement duties in urban areas.
According to the company, while walking the beat, a police officer becomes very familiar with areas of the city by constantly observing, understanding, and interpreting what they see on a daily basis. A system that automatically performs this same mission in asymmetric urban conflicts, absent the presence of the warfighter, can significantly reduce casualties as well as improve the situational awareness.
The UBC programme will run for a twelve month period, at the end of which a flight test will take place to demonstrate the advanced video processing and parasitic recharging system required for the autonomous perch and stare operation. Aurora will develop and integrate capabilities to its Skate SUAS to allow the system to deploy and recover autonomously from a base station, perform perch and stare clandestine surveillance, and provide critical real-time Reconnaissance, Surveillance and Target Acquisition (RSTA) data to users.
More from Uncrewed Vehicles
-
Reamda upgrades Grasshopper UGV observation mast
Reamda, an Irish engineering company with a focus on UGVs and defence applications, delivered its Riddler platformed to the Irish Defence Forces last year.
-
Roke unveils new CUAS solution
The Roke Agile CUAS has been designed to provide protection for military and civilian situations, as well as to handle swarms of UAS by using a range of sensors.
-
Russia reaches new monthly record for Lancet use in Ukraine
The aggressor’s armed forces have adapted Lancet to Ukrainian conditions via iterative developments accompanied by a significant expansion in production capacity
-
India’s pursuit of UAVs fuels domestic innovation and industrial growth
In response to escalating border tensions and the need for enhanced surveillance capabilities, the Indian Army is ramping up its drone acquisitions, reflecting the growing importance of unmanned systems in modern defence strategies.
-
Australia to adopt new predatory OWL species
The Australian Defence Force will introduce the One-Way Loitering (OWL) platform by Innovaero, the country’s first long-range loitering munition, to enhance strike capabilities and understanding of loitering munitions.
-
Dedrone’s latest uncrewed solutions offers “complete CUAS DTI-M kill chain”
DedroneOnTheMove, which integrates advanced sensor-fusion and mitigation technologies, was showcased at Eurosatory 2024 and has been designed for deployment to enhance airspace security in high-risk environments.