Farnborough 2008 Show News - July 16, 2008 - (Page 69)

FA R N B O R O U G H 2 0 0 8 Vulture, a UAV built for endurance UK’s QinetiQ Is to Partner On Ultra-Long-Endurance UAV Boeing has selected QinetiQ, the UK-based defense technology company, as its key technology partner on Vulture—an ultra-longendurance unmanned aerial vehicle concept proposed by the U.S. Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA). The $3.8-million first phase of the program will see QinetiQ participating in system definition and analysis as well as a review of system requirements. The challenge? To create a large, load-carrying UAV able to remain aloft for weeks on end. As part of the Boeing team, QinetiQ is expected to apply expertise gained in the development of Zephyr, a high-altitude long-endurance UAV. Launched by hand, Zephyr is built mainly from lightweight carbon fiber. It flies on solar power by day and draws power from rechargeable lithium sulfur batteries by night. In October of last year, Zephyr exceeded the official world record duration for unmanned flight, with a 54-hour mission flown over the White Sands Missile Range in New Mexico. DARPA’s goal for Vulture is the ability to carry a 1,000-lb, 5-kw payload for an extended period, while remaining on station, despite strong highaltitude winds and other factors. Considered a “pseudo satellite,” Vulture may one day serve as a persistent Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) platform, or as an aerial node in a global communications network. In addition to its UAV work, QinetiQ comes to Farnborough this year riding a wave of significant contract wins. The company is a key player on the F-35 Lightning II program. As a member of TeamUK F-35, QinetiQ is helping with development in key areas, including flight simulation, training, weapons systems and through-life platform management. In June, QinetiQ won a ten-year, £24-million ($48 million) contract for through-life support of the Royal Air Force’s Harrier fleet. The contract, in support of the Harrier Integrated Project Team, is expected to help keep the hovering fighters viable until their scheduled retirement in 2018. —Paul Richfield Northrop Grumman is a leader in the design and deployment of complex enterprise level solutions. Developing high-tech systems such as multi-function apertures and systems, state of the art ground radar systems, and multi-spectral self-protection systems. These systems enable data connections which deliver reliable information to the people who need it, when they need it. The ultimate beneﬁt of elegant engineering. www.northropgrumman.com ©2008 Northrop Grumman Corporation http://www.northropgrumman.com http://www.northropgrumman.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Farnborough 2008 Show News - July 16, 2008

Bombardier, Shenyang $5 Billion for Composites 787 and Seven V-22s for Export Sale? Saving Fuel at SFO Raytheon Roars Into UAVs Bell Eyes ARH-70A Costs All According to Plan We Fly the PC-12NG Russia’s T-50 PAK-FA Optimistic in Israel ICAO Sim Classifications Pratt to Power New Drone Russian Conglomerate

Farnborough 2008 Show News - July 16, 2008

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