XM156 Class I Unmanned Aerial Vehicle
The XM156 Class I Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) is a portable, remote-controlled vertical takeoff mini-drone produced by Honeywell . It weighs less than seven kilograms and is able to clear up enemy positions and movements in house-to-house combat . With the termination of the Future Combat System program by Defense Minister Robert Gates, the project was transferred to the successor program Brigade Combat Team Modernization .
The drone is able to fly and navigate autonomously. In addition to the reconnaissance, it serves as a communication relay for the infantry troops in difficult terrain. The complete system (a drone, a control unit and individual parts) fits into a backpack and weighs 20 kilograms. It can also be operated from vehicles. The drone can stay in the air for 50 minutes and reach an altitude of up to 3000 meters.
Prototypes have been in use in Iraq since June 26, 2008. On November 10, 2008, the US Army ordered 90 Micro Air Vehicles (MAV) Block II for $ 65 million from Honeywell for delivery in 2009. Tests showed that Class 1 was perceived as too bulky, too heavy and too loud when deployed from offensive starting points, and that the testing soldiers therefore preferred the Raven drone . As a result, work on the project was stopped in January 2011 and it was shut down in February.
See also
Individual evidence
- ↑ Page no longer available , search in web archives:
- ↑ http://defense-technologynews.blogspot.com/2008/11/honeywell-wins-production-contract-for.html
- ↑ Testimony of Dr. J. Michael Gilmore ( Memento March 19, 2011 on the Internet Archive ) , March 9, 2011, accessed December 1, 2011
- ↑ defenseindustrydaily.com: BCTM / E-IBCT: FCS spinout Ramps Up, Then Breaks Up , September 14, 2011 Access December 1, 2011
Web links
- Defenseindustrydaily ( Memento from June 10, 2007 in the Internet Archive )
- PDF handout