AIN Defense Perspective » February 24, 2012
The venerable A-10 Thunderbolt II is envisioned as an unmanned weapons delivery platform under the U.S. Defense Advanced Projects Agency Persistent Close Air Support program. (Photo: Darpa)
February 24, 2012, 10:50 AM
Raytheon and Northrop Grumman are developing new systems and concepts for close air support using an unmanned version of the twin-engine A-10 Thunderbolt II. The companies received contracts worth $7 million each in April 2011 under phase one of the U.S. Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (Darpa) Persistent Close Air Support (PCAS) program.
The goal of the PCAS program is to demonstrate the capability for a joint terminal attack controller (JTAC) on the ground “to visualize, select and employ weapons at the time of his choosing from an optionally manned/unmanned A-10 platform,” according to a Darpa broad agency announcement issued in September 2010. The program will develop a “standard architecture for interoperability” between a JTAC and the aircraft, with the necessary equipment contained in a man-portable kit. An aircraft that is within 30 nm of a target is expected to deliver a weapon on that target within six minutes of a JTAC request. A live-fire demonstration is planned for 2015.
The goal of the PCAS program is to demonstrate the capability for a joint terminal attack controller (JTAC) on the ground “to visualize, select and employ weapons at the time of his choosing from an optionally manned/unmanned A-10 platform,” according to a Darpa broad agency announcement issued in September 2010. The program will develop a “standard architecture for interoperability” between a JTAC and the aircraft, with the necessary equipment contained in a man-portable kit. An aircraft that is within 30 nm of a target is expected to deliver a weapon on that target within six minutes of a JTAC request. A live-fire demonstration is planned for 2015.
Ingen kommentarer:
Legg inn en kommentar
Merk: Bare medlemmer av denne bloggen kan legge inn en kommentar.