In shakeup, Army cancels planned scout helo, will retire two drones - Defense One
Shadow will be replaced with new VTOL
The Army will also “phase out operations and sustainment” of its aging RQ-7 Shadow drones, first fielded in combat in 2003. The surveillance UAV is literally a museum piece: at one point, one hung in the Smithsonian.
The propeller drones were unpopular with soldiers, panned as loud, slow-moving, and equipped with poor visual feeds. In 2021, one Army general was impressed that a drone being tested to replace the Shadow could fly in the rain.
In September, the Army selected Griffon and Textron to compete to build vertical-take-off-and-landing drones to replace the RQ-7.
Griffon Aerospace and Textron Systems have each received contracts to design and build prototypes of the tactical unmanned vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL) aircraft for the Army, beating out Northrop Grumman and Sierra Nevada Corps. for phase 2 of the program.
The Army’s program executive office for aviation that the awards are based on the results of a competitive evaluation and could reach $25 million, depending on how far each company progresses through the option agreements.
Ravens Killed in Ukraine
The Army will also phase out its RQ-11 Raven, first fielded two decades ago. In 2016, Ukrainian operators of U.S-donated versions of the drone found that Russian forces could easily intercept and jam some versions of the drone, although later versions of the drones were jam-resistant.
In place of the Shadow and Raven, the Army will “increase investments in cutting-edge, effective, capable and survivable unmanned aerial reconnaissance capabilities and the procurement of commercial small unmanned systems,” the Army press release said.
“We are learning from the battlefield—especially in Ukraine—that aerial reconnaissance has fundamentally changed,” George said in the Army press release. “Sensors and weapons mounted on a variety of unmanned systems and in space are more ubiquitous, further reaching, and more inexpensive than ever before.”
Commercial Success in Ukraine goes Blue
The Army has multiple options for commercial drones, thanks to the Blue UAS list, which consists of drones that the U.S. has cleared for government purchase.
The Army needs to be adaptable with its drone purchasing, George said at AUSA. Rather than having these big programs, the Army should “have a funding line that says, 'Hey, let’s spend this amount of money on small UAS and have the ability to adapt',” he said.
Both Ukraine and Russia have made heavy use of cheap commercial drones for intelligence, targeting, and strikes. Ukraine has found drones so useful that this week it launched a new branch of its military exclusively focused on drone warfare.
Commercially available drones can be easier to fly than specialist models. Operators of surveillance drones in Ukraine, such as those that fly DJI-brand models, finish drone operator courses within as little as five days.
Learn more about the Blue UAS program from the Defense Innovation Unit (DIU) in this DRONERESPONDERS Special Event Webinar hosted by Christopher Todd and featuring program managers from the Autonomy Innovation Portfolio at DIU. This webinar was recorded live on Tuesday, March 22, 2022.
@DefenseInnovationUnit's Blue UAS program has made it easier for government agencies to procure commercial drone technology that’s cleared for use by the DoD. But it’s also created an ecosystem of drone component manufacturers that are pushing the envelope in the development of new technologies, collaborating to build powerful integrations and increasingly benefitting not only government customers, but commercial and industrial companies and the entire UAS industry.
Join key Blue ecosystem technology leaders from @doodlelabs, @DefenseInnovationUnit, @Auterion and @uxvtechnologies as they discuss the program, their drone innovations and where the industry is headed.
Matthew Borowski, Technical Program Director at the Defense Innovation Unit and Chad Sweet, CEO & Co-Founder of ModalAI Inc. explain in plain English what the Blue UAS framework works and how the Defense Innovation Unit chooses which companies receive investment. Matthew clarifies how the DIU Blue UAS framework relates to other Department of Defense divisions.
Blue UAS Drones
Vendors are listed based on alphabetical order. Government partners, please visit this website (CAC required) for more information.
AgEagle (formerly SenseFly) Platform: eBee TAC Website
Ascent Aerosystems Platform:Spirit Website
Blue Halo Platform: IE-V2 Jeti Website
Easy Aerial Platform: Osprey Website
Flightwave Platform: Edge 130 Website
Freefly Systems Platform: Alta X Website
Harris Aerial Platform: H6 Electric H6 Hydrone H6 EFI Website
Inspired Flight Platform: IF 1200A IF 800 IF 750 Website
Parrot Platform: Parrot ANAFI USA GOV Parrot ANAFI USA MIL Website
PDW Platform: C100 Website
Skydio Platforms: X2D Color 1.8 GHz X2D Color 5 GHz Thermal 1.8 GHz Thermal 5 GHz X2D Multiband Website
Teal Platform: Teal 2 Golden Eagle Website
Vantage Platform: Vesper Website
Wingtra Platform: Wingtra One Gen II Website
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