For the US Army, a drone was created that flies 500 km at a time and does not need navigation

Northrop Grumman and Martin UAV have completed flight tests of an improved version of the Martin V-BAT unmanned aerial system (UAS).

The flight was conducted as part of a US Army competitionFuture Tactical Unmanned Aircraft System (FTUAS) to replace the outdated RQ-7B Shadow unmanned aerial vehicle for the army, battle groups, special forces and ranger battalions.

Military commanders now rely on dronesfor day and night reconnaissance, surveillance and target acquisition, as well as general situational awareness. Now the US Army wants to quickly implement a replacement. Among the requirements for the updated system are navigation without GPS and constant aerial reconnaissance. It should also be suitable for a small team in a confined space and without a runway.

Martin UAV developers have created a replacement -improved V-BAT from Martin. Weighing 38 kg with a full fuel tank and payload, it stays airborne for eight hours with an additional hour's worth of fuel. In the air, the drone develops a maximum speed of 167 km / h) at a maximum altitude of 4600 m.The flight range is 563 km.

The enhanced V-BAT is based on the Martin UAV V-BAT line of unmanned aerial vehicles. Photo: Northrop Grumman

V-BAT can carry different payloads,it can be easily changed to suit the requirements of any mission. For example, the system provides soldiers with synthetic aperture radars and electronic warfare payloads.

The tactical drone features advanced navigation without GPS and the Shield Hivemind system, which uses machine learning to prepare for new, more challenging missions.

To read Further

See a heavy attack drone that carries a ton of weapons

Scientists have been unable to catch Rambo's fox for three years. It prevents rare animals from being released into the forest.

A spaceship several kilometers away: everything that is known about China's new project