Technical Services - Winter 2008 - (Page 6)

lcoe Life CyCLe OptimizatiOn and engineering U.S. Army Upgrades Entire Hunter Fleet to MQ-5B Configuration 1 S ince the introduction of the modernized Hunter MQ-5B to the U.S. Army soldiers on the ground in Iraq, the performance and reliability of the Hunter system have improved dramatically. The result of this superior program performance is a decision to upgrade all operational Hunter Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) in the fleet to the newer and more capable configuration. The Army has now decided to outfit the Technical Services Hunter GOCO team with MQ-5Bs, providing increased capability and reliability. These systems will be retrofitted with a Communications Relay Package to extend the range of battlefield communications and weapons pylons to continue the important Viper Strike capability in theatre. This decision follows an Army Aviation Association of American Symposium in November 2007, where the Hunter GOCO system was showcased by Col. A.T. Ball, commander of the 25th Combat Airborne Brigade, for the difference it was making in Operation Iraqi Freedom, saving the lives of U.S. military forces and helping to eliminate the threat of insurgents. TS 3 Currently, all Army-operated Hunters are in the MQ-5B configuration, providing warfighters with modernized avionics, improved target location error, double the endurance, an unmanned air vehicle heavy fuel engine (a first) and increased reliability. In 2007, as part of the U.S. military surge operations and in response to the devastation caused by improvised explosive devices (IEDs), a Northrop Grumman governmentowned contractor-operated (GOCO) team was deployed to Iraq with the legacy Hunter assets. This team supported the historic first Army weaponized engagement from a UAS on IED emplacers with Northrop Grumman’s Viper Strike munition and mastered “buddy lazing” targets for attack helicopters, keeping those low-flying, slow-moving manned assets a safe distance from harm’s way. 1 Warfighters training at Sierra Vista pass between two Hunters in a hangar. TS team member Ken Stuart integrates the Northrop Grumman designed UAV Heavy Fuel Engine (a DoD first) onto the Hunter MQ-5B airframe. TS team member John George performs an external pilot pre-flight and final walk-around inspection. 2 2 6 3 Technical Services Magazine • Winter 2008

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Technical Services - Winter 2008

Technical Services - Winter 2008 Contents President’s Column Lake Charles Maintenance and Modification Center Celebrates Milestones F-18 Fleet Support in Malaysia B-2 Receives Upgrades U.S. Army Upgrades Entire Hunter Fleet Global Hawk Missions Flown in Support of California Wildfires Lanham Site Provides World-Class Support FSE Warner Robins Achieves CMMI Level 3 Rating TS Participates in Multi-Sector Conference Egypt and Volunteer Activities Fort Hood Team Prepares Warfighters for Combat; eSupport Team TS Team Members in Turkey Wallops Island Team Wins Kreiger Award TS Teams Win Chairman’s Award for Excellence ACS Program and Continuing Education; Space Gateway Training Team to Combat IED Threat Shoulder to Shoulder – Brad Britt; Saudi Arabia Service Milestones Warner Robins Training and Simulation I’m In! Ethics; ID/IQ Business; All-Hands Meetings

Technical Services - Winter 2008

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