Lockheed Martin [LMT] and Kaman Aerospace [KAMN] have successfully demonstrated the capability of an unmanned version of the K-MAX intermeshing-rotor helicopter to resupply Marines at forward operating bases in Afghanistan, the companies said recently.
During a series of flights earlier this month in subfreezing temperatures at the U.S. Army’s Dugway Proving Ground, Utah, the unmanned K-MAX demonstrated autonomous and remote control flight over both line-of-sight and satellite-based beyond line-of-sight data link.
“We met or exceeded the requirements during the demonstration,” Dan Spoor, a Lockheed Martin vice president, told sister publication Defense Daily last week.
Performance attributes demonstrated included hovering at 12,000 feet with a 1,500-pound sling load; delivering 3,000 pounds of cargo well within the six-hour required timeframe to a forward operating base (two 150 nautical mile round-trip flights); remotely controlling flight and a precision load delivery by a ground-based operator in both day and night conditions; and uploading a new mission plan to the aircraft’s mission management system during flight. The demonstrations were completed in just over 10 flight hours, according to Spoor.
A Marine Corps request for proposals (RFP) for an “Immediate Cargo Unmanned Aerial System” was issued last spring. The plan calls for an unmanned aircraft capable of delivering 10 tons of supplies at high altitudes and across a distance of 150 miles within 24 hours.
The Marines want to field the new drone this year, hopeful that the use of such aircraft can reduce the danger and expense of resupplying troops in remote outposts with trucks. Ground supply convoys in Afghanistan are vulnerable to roadside bombs and ambushes, and the rough terrain and poor road conditions cause costly damage to trucks over time.
Initial respondents to the Marine Corp’s RFP last year included the Northrop Grumman [NOC] Fire Scout; the Boeing [BA] A160T Hummingbird; the Mist Mobility Integrated Systems Technology (MMIST) SnowGoose; and the Kaman K-MAX. Last summer, the Marines awarded Boeing $500,000 and Kaman and Lockheed Martin–which provides the datalinks and interfaces that allow for an unmanned capability–$860,000 to demonstrate their respective helicopters (Defense Daily, Aug. 14).
According to Boeing’s Hummingbird program manager, Ernie Wattam, the Boeing team is scheduled to conduct its demonstration during the final week of February. “We are confident in the A160T’s ability to meet the Marines’ requirement for unmanned aerial resupply,” he said.
Naval Air Systems Command is the contracting authority for the project. The Marine Corps Systems Command at Quantico developed the urgent requirement.
Kaman and Lockheed Martin also demonstrated the KMAX’s four-hook carousel for the Marines, according to Spoor. That system enables multi-load deliveries in a single flight. Lifting a total cargo of 3,450 pounds, the aircraft flew to three pre-programmed delivery coordinates, autonomously releasing a sling load at each location. The fourth delivery was performed under manual control by the ground operator at the impromptu request of Marine Corps officials.
“I think our ability to switch so readily between the fully autonomous and manual modes really impressed the customer,” said Spoor.
The K-MAX has flown nearly 400 hours in unmanned mode since 2007, according to Spoor. The demonstrations fulfilled the contract awarded to Kaman in August.
A manned version of K-MAX has accumulated more than 250,000 flight hours, conducting repetitive lift operations for the construction and logging industries in Canada, Japan, New Zealand, South Korea, Switzerland and the United States. The aircraft is typically manned by a single pilot and is easily maintained by a single mechanic, according to Kaman officials. It was certified by the Federal Aviation Administration in 1994.
Spoor explained that the Marines have given the competing companies a “fairly narrow window” to demonstrate an unmanned cargo helicopter that could be fielded to Afghanistan in relatively short order.
The Marine Corps is now in the process of finalizing its concept of operations for a cargo drone, and Spoor said he anticipates a “request of some sort to industry” in the coming months.