US Navy foresees an uncrewed future for its surface and underwater fleet
The service has been conducting various procurement and development efforts to integrate unmanned surface and underwater vehicles into its inventory.
Composite UAS airframe manufacturer UAV Factory said that strong market demand was behind the decision to develop a new pneumatic catapult capable of handling a take-off weight of 60kg.
A company spokesperson said the 12kJ catapult would open up a new sector of the market and anticipated solid sales numbers. At double the strength of the original version it would offer the same benefits, such as portability and versatility, as its smaller 6kJ counterpart.
The spokesperson added: ‘We had great interest for a larger catapult for some time so the idea came from market demand. The Asian and North American Markets is where the highest demand is right now, but Europe has good interest as well.’
Konstantins Popiks, CTO at UAV factory, said in a statement that the new catapult would be the most powerful and mobile of its kind in the world.
In 2012 the company announced that its Penguin B UAV completed a 54.5 hour non-stop flight, developments of which led to the release of the Penguin C model one year later.
The service has been conducting various procurement and development efforts to integrate unmanned surface and underwater vehicles into its inventory.
Tekever has manufactured the AR3, AR4 and AR5 UAS with all systems sharing common electronics and software architecture, which has enabled the reuse of ground segment elements within the new ARX UAS.
As the dynamics of aerial combat rapidly evolve, Chinese scientists have engineered a sophisticated air separation drone model that can fragment into up to six drones, each capable of executing distinct battlefield roles and challenging the efficacy of current anti-drone defences such as the UK’s Dragonfire laser system.
Advancements in air defence technologies have begun to reshape aerial combat dynamics in the Middle East, as illustrated by recent events involving the Israeli Air Force and Hezbollah.
Both sides of the Russia-Ukraine war have been using UAS for effective low-cost attacks, as well as impactful web and social media footage. Thousands more have now been committed to Ukrainian forces.
The US Army has intentions to develop light, medium and heavy variants of the Robotic Combat Vehicle (RCV) as part of the branche’s Next Generation Combat Vehicle family.