Military

Soldiers assigned to the 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 82nd Airborne got a hands on perspective on the Raven, an unmanned aerial vehicle, during a 10-day Raven training course from April 22 to May 2 at the 3rd Brigade Combat Team headquarters.

Once limited to brigade and higher level commanders, the hand-launched aircraft is one of the latest technologies to enhance warfighting capabilities, putting aerial reconnaissance tools in the hands of Paratroopers on the ground.

The U.S. Air Force proposed the MQ-9 system in response to the Department of Defense request for Global War on Terrorism initiatives. It is larger and more powerful than the MQ-1 Predator and is designed to go after time-sensitive targets with persistence and precision, and destroy or disable those targets. The "M" is the Department of Defense designation for multi-role and "Q" means unmanned aircraft system. The "9" refers to the series of purpose-built remotely piloted aircraft systems.

The MQ-9 Reaper is a medium-to-high altitude, long endurance remotely piloted aircraft system. The MQ-9's primary mission is as a persistent hunter-killer against emerging targets to achieve joint force commander objectives. The MQ-9's alternate mission is to act as an intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance asset, employing sensors to provide real-time data to commanders and intelligence specialists at all levels.

Lt. Gen. Norman Seip, the 12th Air Force (Air Forces Southern) commander, congratulated Airmen at Creech Air Force Base May 6 as the 432nd Wing marked its first year as the Air Force's only MQ-1 Predator and MQ-9 Reaper unmanned aerial vehicle wing.

"The 432nd Wing has grown exponentially over the last year, in manpower, demand, flying hours, sorties, technology, reach, support for the warfighter and in battlefield capability," said General Seip. "From day one, the 432nd Wing Airmen have been 'all in' in the support of ongoing operations; particularly in operations Iraqi (Freedom) and Enduring Freedom."

A major exercise and demonstration of unmanned autonomous undersea vehicles (AUVs) will take place in Narragansett Bay from May 12-23, 2008 during AUVfest 2008. The event is hosted by the Naval Undersea Warfare Center (NUWC) Division Newport and co-sponsored by the Office of Naval Research (ONR) and the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration Office (NOAA) of Ocean Exploration.

Since 1997, the U. S. Navy´s Office of Naval Research has sponsored Autonomous Underwater Vehicle Festivals to expose both the defense and scientific communities to technical advances and common applications in AUV technology. The AUVfest 2008 theme is "Partnership Runs Deep: ONR Unmanned Mine Hunting Technologies help NOAA Explore Sunken History."

A significant milestone was reached more than two years ahead of schedule on with the beginning of the 24th MQ-1 Predator combat air patrol in the Global War on Terror.

This CAP doubles the 24/7/365 Predator capability of last year two years ahead of the Department of Defense goal of 2010 for 21 Predator CAPs.

Predators now supply more than 13,400 hours of full motion video to ground forces every month while conducting armed over-watch, force protection and precision air-to-surface engagements with the AGM-114 Hellfire missile.

Following a series of successful reliability characterization tests, Lockheed Martin [NYSE: LMT] received U.S. Government approval to continue development and production of the Joint Air-To-Surface Standoff Missile (JASSM). During the recent tests, the stealthy standoff cruise missile demonstrated its capabilities across a wide variety of targets – including hardened, underground bunkers and air defense systems.

The Lockheed Martin [NYSE: LMT]-led LCS team recently completed another successful milestone in the production of the nation’s first Littoral Combat Ship (LCS) with the light off and testing of Freedom (LCS 1)’s main propulsion diesel engines.

The 378-foot Freedom is being built to help the U.S. Navy defeat growing littoral – or close-to-shore – threats and provide access and dominance in coastal water battlespace. Once complete, Freedom will be a fast, maneuverable and networked surface combatant with operational flexibility to execute focused missions, such as mine warfare, anti-submarine warfare, surface warfare and humanitarian relief. LCS brings a unique combination of high speed, superb maneuverability and a shallow draft, brought together in a special hull form, to enable it to carry out these critical missions.

After many years of technology refinement, the Electronic Systems Center-led land-based increment of the Joint Precision Approach and Landing System is poised to progress to the system development and demonstration phase.

Known as JPALS, the system uses the Global Positioning System, or GPS, to enable accurate and reliable landing guidance for approaches, including those conducted in low-visibility conditions. It is, in fact, designed to provide precision approach and landing for all the military services in any weather and for virtually any mission, according to 1st Lt. Patrick Ris of the 853rd Electronic Systems Group. He is the ESC deputy program manager.

BAE Systems will lead a team of scientists that will develop miniature robots to improve military situational awareness. The company signed a $38 million agreement with the U.S. Army Research Laboratory to lead an alliance of researchers and scientists from the Army, academia and industry.

The Micro Autonomous Systems and Technology (MAST) Collaborative Technology Alliance will research and develop advanced robotic equipment for use in urban environments and complex terrain, such as mountains and caves. The alliance will create an autonomous, multifunctional collection of miniature intelligence-gathering robots that can operate in places too inaccessible or dangerous for humans.