1 - nEUROn

Operator: European Union
Developer: Dassault (lead), EADS, Saab
Armament: Laser-guided air-to-ground munitions
Performance: The 5.5 to 7-ton nEUROn will have a 12.5-meter wingspan, and fly at up to 0.8 Mach. Potentially, an individual operator will be able to control an entire squad of networked UCAVs at once.
Progress: Dassault plans to fly the initial tech demonstrator by 2011.

2- SGR-A1

Operator: South Korea
Developer: Samsung Techwin
Armament: Variety of small arms, including light machine gun or launcher to dispense tear gas canisters or rubber rounds
Performance: A trio of cameras can detect targets at up to 4 km, and a laser rangefinder helps track them at up to 2 km (distances are halved at night). Its pattern recognition algorithms theoretically allow it to pick out humans, and presumably prevent it from opening fire on animals.
Progress: The developer did not respond to calls and e-mails, but the system has missed its announced deadline — it was originally slated for deployment by the end of last year.

3 - Heron TP (”Eitan”)

Operator: Israel
Developer: Malat
Armament: None specified
Performance: With more sophisticated avionics than Israel’s previous UAVs, more endurance (up to 36 hours), and a higher altitude ceiling (at least 45,000 feet), this 1200-hp aircraft will not only fly above civilian air traffic, but it should require less operator intervention. It can also take off and land autonomously, although that has become a standard feature for many current UAV models. The real question is payload - the TP can carry at least one ton, fueling suspicions that some sort of weapon system could be installed. Israel, however, is famously tight-lipped about its UAVs, refusing to confirm that it has ever engaged targets with its existing fleet. In other words, we may never know for certain whether the Heron TP can, or will, be used offensively.
Progress: This UAV was unveiled last June; production is expected to begin early next year.

4 - Protector

Operator: Singapore
Developer: BAE Systems, Lockheed Martin, RAFAEL
Armament: 7.62mm machine gun
Performance: Capable of speeds of up to 30 knots, this 30-ft-long robot has a 10-mile range, and is equipped with microphones and speakers, for remote communication between operators and potential hostiles. Its stabilized weapon mount hasn’t been tested in combat, but since the vessel itself consists of a rigid-hulled inflatable boat, the Protector isn’t necessarily designed to survive a firefight. Once the guns or bombs go off, its job is essentially done.
Progress: Although the United States Navy and Coast Guard continue to investigate the Protector, this USV has been an active part of Singapore’s Navy since 2005.

5- BLADE (Battlefield Loitering Artillery Direct Effect)

Operator: United Kingdom
Developer: Ultra Electronics (lead), BAE Systems, EMIT, Qinetiq, RAFAEL, Raytheon
Armament: Onboard munitions
Performance: Like the Sparrow-N it’s based on, each BLADE UAV has a maximum endurance of 6 hours. It also has the ability to navigate to a destination autonomously, and guide its own final descent toward a target. In theory, drones could perform a range of supportive roles, some searching for targets, others ramming into them, and still others assessing battle damage (to determine whether more kamikaze runs are necessary).
Progress: The BLADE team is scheduled to produce a demonstration by the end of this year.

***Reference: military.com

The V-22 Osprey, built by Bell Helicopter Textron Inc., performed superbly in its first combat missions with the US Marines, having flown in Iraq.

Lt. Col. Paul Rock, the commander of Marine Medium Tiltrotor Squadron 263, praised the hybrid helicopter-airplanes and the pilots who flew them.  Rock said:

“We did the full spectrum of what the aircraft was meant to do.  It was very satisfying to see how well it performed.”

The Osprey’s design allows it to fly quickly like a normal airplane then switch to helicopter mode to land and has proven its worth on the two occasions it came under fire.  Lt. Gen. George Trautman III, the Marine Corps deputy commandant for aviation said the machines logged less than a third of the repair time required to keep Vietnam-era CH-46E Sea Knight helicopters in the air.  Some technical problems arise during the deployment, such as the failure of electrical distribution systems for the sensors on a number of Ospreys in a short period.

Gen. Trautman called the deployment a test but not “the final exam.”  He said the Air Force is “leaning forward” in plans to use a modified version of the Osprey, which mat include the addition of a belly-mounted turret to give the aircraft a better field of fire.

Col. Rock, when asked about the lack of a turret-mounted weapon on the Marine variant, he quipped, “Never ask a Marine if he wants more guns on his airplane.  More guns is good.”

As part of an Earth Day community relations project, sailors of USS Carl Vinson (CVN 70) read books to children and helped plant flower seeds at Barnes and Noble in Newport News this past April 24.

The sailors read books about plants, trees and earth stewardship to local kids, and discussed some of the Navy’s environmentally friendly recycling policies and procedures. They also helped the children plant seeds that they could take to grow at home.

Carl Vinson sailors participate in various community relations projects throughout the year, with many aimed at helping and mentoring children in the Hampton Roads area. Earth Day was just another opportunity to volunteer their services.

“The kids really enjoyed their time with the sailors,” Barnes and Noble associate Joann Arnold said. “They had fun and responded very well to all of the interaction taking place, and the Navy showed a really good presence in the community.”

Officials at the Smithsonian Institution’s National Air and Space Museum displayed a new exhibit of military unmanned aerial vehicles representing each branch of service last Thursday.

Of the six UAVs on display, three artifacts came from the U.S. Air Force:

- MQ-1L Predator A
- RQ-3A Darkstar
- X-45A Joint Unmanned Combat Air System

“UAVs are the future of combat air forces,” said Dik Daso, the museum curator for modern military aircraft. “This generation is familiar with UAVs and most of what they see here they’ll recognize.”

Each of the UAVs in the exhibit is exceptional in its individual accomplishments. For example, the Predator in the display was one of the first three MQ-1s over Afghanistan after 9-11 (September 11, 2001). Additionally, it was the first Predator to launch a missile in combat.

The curator said the Predator on display flew 196 combat sorties, racking up more than 2,700 flight hours, about the same number of flying hours Mr. Daso accumulated as a pilot during his 20-year Air Force career.

For one museum patron, seeing the UAV exhibit was a welcome surprise.

“The display looks great and it’s amazing to see (the UAVs) in person,” said Chicago native John Perseghin, who was visiting the Air and Space Museum with his daughter’s class. “To me, it’s obvious we need these in our military. They’re important in doing things like reconnaissance without jeopardizing human lives.”

Mr. Daso said their goal is to tell museum patrons about the role UAVs play in modern warfare.

“We want to educate our visitors even more on what UAVs have done and what they currently do for us today,” he said. “We used unmanned aerial vehicles in World War II and Vietnam, but things like the Predator have utterly revolutionized the way our military fights. The UAVs in our display have significant combat histories and important stories to tell. That’s why they’re here.”