Drone-helikopter etterfylt av bemannet helikopter - marine Times

 

Manned Marine helicopter refuels unmanned helo for 1st time

 

By Irene Loewenson

 Aug 21, 05:13 PM

Sailors assigned to Helicopter Sea Combat Squadron 21 operate an MQ-8C Fire Scout during Service Level Training Exercise 5-23, at Camp Wilson, Twentynine Palms, California, July 31. (Lance Cpl. Richard PerezGarcia/Marine Corps)

Marines delivered fuel from a traditional crewed helicopter to an uncrewed autonomous helicopter in July for the first time in the history of the Marine Corps or Navy, according to the Corps.

During an exercise at Twentynine Palms, California, a Marine heavy-lift CH-53E Super Stallion provided fuel to an unmanned Navy MQ-8C Fire Scout, as a way to extend the range of the latter aircraft, the Marine Corps said in a Thursday Marine Corps story.

On July 31, the hefty Super Stallion transferred approximately 700 pounds of fuel to the Fire Scout, just under the uncrewed aircraft’s maximum payload, according to the story.

The Super Stallion can afford to hand off that amount of fuel: Its maximum fuel payload is 23,450 pounds. That means the Super Stallion can refuel the Fire Scout multiple times in hard-to-reach areas, keeping the Fire Scout going over longer distances and periods of time, according to the release.