*UK reveals details of six new UAV programmes
An intensive secret programme of development work on a series of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) has been disclosed by BAE Systems. The company said in...
17-Feb-2006
Being conservative and assuming that this includes two Ravens, Corax and Herti that still leaves two UAVs that have previously been classified (or at least open secrets).
If only there was someone here who had a subscription to Jane's (hint hint)
This message has been edited by RM-Nod on Feb 20, 2006 4:50 PM This message has been edited by RM-Nod on Feb 19, 2006 5:00 PM This message has been edited by RM-Nod on Feb 19, 2006 4:58 PM
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MARK DALY Editor Jane's International Defence Review London
* The UK has developed six completely new UAV systems
* The aircraft use an autonomous mission system
* Herti-1A made the first UK autonomous flight of an unmanned aerial system in UK airspace in 2005
An intensive secret programme of development work on a series of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) has been disclosed by BAE Systems.
The company said in London on 16 February that six completely new UAV systems have been tested in the UK and Australia over a three-year period.
The disclosure was partly prompted by the emergence of the Defence Industrial Strategy document at the end of 2005, which in turn had led to the limited release of some photographs of a UAV demonstrator called Corax.
Now BAE has reported that proof of concept work has been conducted since 2001 on advanced configuration air vehicles with a blended wing body design and a flush air data system and advanced flight control systems. The design, which emerged from this process was called Kestrel. This design then led to two further experimental air vehicles called Raven and Corax.
A main feature of these vehicles was the use of an autonomous mission system. This system was next integrated into an existing airframe, Herti-D, a Polish composite glass-fibre design from J&AS Aero, purchased by BAE Systems.
With the new mission system, Herti-1A emerged and it was this air vehicle that made the first fully autonomous flight of an unmanned system in UK airspace. This was completed on 18 August 2005 from Campbeltown Airport in Scotland, starting with a mouse click command to start the flight, leading to an autonomous mission over Machrihanish Bay and finishing with an automatic landing.
The particular significance of this flight, say the company, was that it was made from an operational commercial airport rather than from a military base, or on a closed missile range. The UK Civil Aviation Authority authorised the test flight with Herti-1A carrying a B-class registration (an aircraft registration allocated to manufacturers for test flights).
Herti-1A is the main focus of the company's near-term plan, with civil/military applications such as coastal watch duties, border surveillance and pipeline patrol being sought. By the end of this year 10 air vehicles will be completed, two powered by BMW engines and the rest with quieter four-cylinder Rotax turbocharged fuel injection motors. The company claims that the small Herti airframe is "virtually invisible at 5,000 ft".
Sensors can comprise three cameras integrated into BAE System's Imagery Collection and Exploitation System payload package.
This message has been edited by spider034 on Feb 20, 2006 6:36 AM
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Great! I hope they'll sell a lot of Hertis, wonder where they'll build them. Woodford would need the work really with Warton/Samlesbury safe for the next two decades or so and Brough not going out of businees for the next decade or so thanks to the Hawk.
So there are Kestrel, Raven, Corax, Herti. If Mr. Turner reads this site: I WANT PICTURES!
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This may be old news and a little off topic, but it maybe why we did not pick up this topic earlier.
I was using Google to search for other related articles on the UK UAVs and was surprised to find that Google News does not find articles published in JDW. (Of course they are there when using Google to search the web.)
Try searching Google News with: - jdw.janes.com, for anytime, with safe filter off and you get no returns.
The same happens with “Jane's Defence Weekly”. The only hits are references in other newspapers to Jane’s original report.
Try searching on a quotation from a known JDW article such as section of the phrase "An intensive secret programme of development work on a series of unmanned aerial vehicles", and Google News gives no hits.
However searching on “Flight International”, brings up all the articles.
The trouble appears to be in Google’s definition of a “news source”, some specialist publications must be excluded.
This post is just a “heads up” that using Google News to search for defence related topics may result in you missing breaking news.
This is a pain because it is much easier to narrow the date range for the search in Google News rather than use Google to search the web, where the best date filter is “last 3 months” and also the results cannot be ordered by date.
I don’t know about anyone else, but I think this is why I missed the original post in JDW last week.
Am I being dumb or have I just been "Googled".
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Edit - One thing that's got me is that none of these sound as though they look anything like the various concepts that have been produced by BAE over the years.
Well let's see how they look like in real. But really those are only pictures, they might have soon relaized that they want to go Kestrel design and just not published the "winning" design and they then just published a lot of "maybes". The BAe/MDD/NG JSF contender looked on artists impressions differently than the acutal design.
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Yeah but most of these came after 2001, strange to have concept art that shows vehicles that are nothing like what is being worked on. I wonder whether these represent other BAE ambitions.
I'd imagine the demonstrators will just be based on airframes built by J&AS Aero but I doubt the company would have the production capacity to build large numbers so if BAE do go ahead with a commercial Herti UAV based on that airframe then they'd probably licence it and produce it themselves, or just repackage the mission systems and sensors into something else.
Re: UK reveals details of six new UAV programmes + Picture of Raven
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February 20 2006, 4:52 PM
Tornado GR4 Will Fly With Active E-SCAN Radar
By Douglas Barrie
02/19/2006 03:54:26 PM
OUT OF THE SHADOWS
Britain, working under a blanket of secrecy, has been test-flying an unmanned combat air vehicle demonstrator since late 2003 as part of a broader technology initiative to develop its next-generation of long-range deep-strike platforms.
The BAE Systems Raven low-observable unmanned combat air vehicle design first flew on Dec. 17, 2003--100 years to the day after the Wright Brothers--a date selected in part to reflect the significance of the event for the company's future strategy.
The import of the British Defense Ministry's clearance for BAE to begin to discuss the Raven also plays into the far wider issue of U.K. collaboration in developing an operational UCAV. Britain had signed up for Washington's now defunct Joint-Unmanned Combat Air System, with a transatlantic acquisition program likely to follow. Continuing--and, some British sources suggest, worsening--problems with British access on the Lockheed Martin F-35 Joint Strike Fighter program also play into this arena.
Raven underscores the U.K.'s national capability in UCAV developments--and that it is not beholden to Washington, or for that matter, anywhere--in pursuing such systems. A full-scale UCAV technology demonstration program is due to be launched by London this year, building on Raven, and other, still classified, research and development work.
Defense Ministry sources have previously confirmed the U.K. is funding the development of what they dubbed "nugget technologies" that would provide the government "leverage" in any collaborative environment. Examples of such technology include low observables (LO), autonomous operation and sensor integration.
TWO RAVEN AIRFRAMES HAVE BEEN BUILT and test flown using the Woomera Range in Australia. The choice of site reflects the sensitivity surrounding the program, while also providing near-guaranteed acceptable flying weather.
The Defense Ministry has been funding BAE's LO research into future air systems since at least the early 1990s. Initially aimed at a manned replacement for the Tornado GR4 strike aircraft, through the Testbed stealth aircraft non-flying demonstrator, the emphasis began to shift to LO UCAV and unmanned recon air vehicle platforms even before the Testbed program was completed in 1999. BAE's Nightjar I and Nightjar II ministry-funded research examined a number of airframe bodies using the company's radar cross-section range at its Warton site.
The jet-powered Raven's blended wing-body airframe, with outer wing control surfaces aligned with the trailing edge, reduces radio-frequency scattering. The lack of vertical or horizontal control surfaces also helps reduce the radar cross-section.
The vehicle is manufactured from carbon-fiber composite, with the fuselage shell produced at BAE's Samlesbury site in the northwest of England. This facility also produces composite structures for the F-35.
Raven fed into BAE's work on the Defense Ministry's Future Offensive Air System (FOAS) program. In 1997, the ministry launched study work into the role a "UAV" might have in meeting the FOAS deep-strike mission. The Strategic UAV (Experiment) (SUAVE) succeeded FOAS in 2005. Rolls-Royce and Smiths Aerospace also are involved in ongoing risk-reduction work for the ministry on SUAVE, building on the Raven.
BAE flew a remotely piloted blended-wing demonstrator, the Kestrel, in 2002, Andy Wilson, BAE director of sales, autonomous airborne systems, says. Raven, however, was intended to explore autonomous flight operation using a "highly aerodynamically unstable" airframe. The UCAV demonstrator has a duplex digital flight control system.
BAE is exploring modularity in its approach to UCAV/URAV and UAVs. Raven shares the same central fuselage shell as the Corax strategic reconnaissance URAV design, with a common flight control system. Corax, however, has a high-aspect ratio wing optimized for high-altitude long-endurance flight. Such a wing also lends itself to being fitted with a conformal array radar antenna, if blending and flexing issues can be resolved. As with Raven, the airframe was aerodynamically unstable, and part of the program was to look at autonomous control of such a design. Similar schemes, such as the U.S. Darkstar, have suffered controllability issues.
Both Raven and Corax are sub-scale airframes--and although the company is unable yet to release size data on either air vehicle, Corax has a 30-ft.-plus wingspan.
A Corax-style URAV could form a part of the Dabinett requirement. This program is looking at the U.K.'s future intelligence surveillance target acquisition and reconnaissance (Istar) needs. Part of this covers what is sometimes referred to as the Long-Range Long-Endurance or global surveillance capability that could be fulfilled by a strategic low-observable UAV. Research into space-based radar is also ongoing.
SUAVE cuts across two of the Defense Ministry's Equipment Capability Directorates, Deep Target Attack and Istar. The Deep Target Attack directorate has asked that industry examine a number of UCAV-related areas, both in terms of design and development, and operations.
While Raven and Corax are sub-scale airframes, industry and ministry officials are discussing whether the next-technology demonstrator should be a full-scale airframe. This program would include an internal weapons carriage and deployment. One point under review is whether a full-size UCAV airframe is actually necessary to achieve this.
The government's Defense Industrial Strategy policy document, published in December 2005, notes: "Building on the success of these programs [Raven] we intend to move forward . . . with a more substantial TDP designed to give us and industry a better understanding of key technologies of [broader] relevance to UAVs and UCAVs."
BAE is not only focusing on UCAV and URAV development. Its Herti family of air vehicles is intended to provide a medium-altitude long-endurance surveillance capability. The Herti 1A design has endurance well in excess of 25 hr., and an operational radius of more than 540 naut. mi., says Wilson. This version of Herti has a wingspan of 41 ft., with a glass-fiber fuselage. The system becomes autonomous on the runway.
HERTI HAS BEEN TEST FLOWN with an electro-optical payload in a chin-mounted turret, and flight trials using lightweight synthetic aperture radar will likely be carried out later this year, Wilson adds. Rail-launch trials of the vehicle are also being considered. The system uses image-processing algorithms to automatically identify areas, or objects, of interest, as part of its imagery collection and exploitation system.
The company believes Herti, which has been flying from Machrihanish in southwest Scotland, has clear applications for military and civil surveillance roles.
Not sure what the title of the article has to do with anything, it doesn't seem to be mentioned anywhere. If true though it'd be very interesting to see whether this will be the Vixen500E or whatever.
Re: UK reveals details of six new UAV programmes + Picture of Raven
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February 20 2006, 5:47 PM
I'd say Raven.
Some interesting information from FI, apparently Herti-D was jet powered!
BAE boosts UAV programme with manufacturing drive
Demonstrator success pushes effort to expand project and seek export buyers
BAE Systems has launched a major expansion of its unmanned air vehicle activities, with the formation of a new Autonomous Systems and Future Capability (Air) organisation and approval to initiate a major manufacturing drive that will see 10 of its Herti-1A demonstrators flying by the end of 2006.
The propeller-driven UAV is to undergo a substantial increase to its flight-test campaign this year, with two BMW-engined prototypes to be joined by a further eight company-funded air vehicles powered by Rotax engines. BAE late last year provided first details of the 450kg (990lb) UAV, which conducted its first fully autonomous mission last August. Test objectives for this year include managing up to four air vehicles simultaneously using one ground control station and possibly flying with a Selex-supplied lightweight synthetic-aperture radar payload.
The Herti-1A success marked the culmination of a three-year effort that also included sorties of a remotely-piloted Kestrel blended wing-body demonstrator, two unmanned combat air vehicle-like Raven airframes, a derivative Corax reconnaissance platform and a jet-powered Herti-1D. “We have been doing a fair amount of experimentation work for some time and have got some very viable platforms out of that,” says Andy Wilson, sales and marketing director for the Military Autonomous Systems (Air) unit. “In the past three years we have picked out some of the absolutely core technologies.”
BAE is promoting Herti for military and civilian tasks including reconnaissance, surveillance, border patrol, pipeline monitoring and disaster management – targeting a potentially massive sector of the UAV market currently “not dominated by any brand, country or product,” says Wilson.
The Herti-1A has a 12.6m (41ft) wingspan and a projected endurance of around 30h. The company is also marketing an Imagery Collection and Exploitation payload, which Wilson says can pass compressed electro-optic images via a low-bandwidth datalink “not unlike your mobile phone line”.
UK reveals details of six new UAV programmes + Picture of Raven
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February 20 2006, 6:18 PM
I have been digging.
Gliding & Motorgliding International
By Gillian (Bryce-Smith)
Issue 4/2001
“The J6 Fregata
The J6 Fregata motorglider from Poland has emerged from a collaboration between Wojciech Jeriorski and designer and manufacturer Jaroslaw Janowski, who heads J & AS Aero Design Ltd.
This interesting aircraft, which uses a redesigned Honda 52hp at 6000rpm motorboat engine, flies at 191km/h with a fuel consumption of six to eight litres per hour.
This gives enough power for take-off and has a fuel capacity of 60 litres. Its wingspan is 12.55m with a maximum weight of 410kg.
The LD is around 20 to 22:1 and in 160 hours of test flying it has soared well in thermals and wave.
Three experimental Fregata’s have been built and the aircraft is awaiting a JAR 22 certification.
I think that Gillian has got the “Designer” and “Manufacturer” the wrong way around.
Poland has lots of experience in building gliders in GRP (and refinishing older gliders).
The last aircraft built in this fashion by the UK was the Slingsby Firefly, which first flew in 1982 (and before that was the Vega glider, which ceased production in 1982.).
The airframes could be being built in Poland and supplied as kits, and or by Slingsby. I doubt that BAE Systems is manufacturing the airframe in house; I think they are procuring a COTS airframe.
My Avatar is my Jantar glider built in Poland (landed in a field in Scotland). I have shares in two Jantars. Our club as three Junior gliders also built in Poland. Last year we had two of our K21 two seat gliders re-furbished/repaired in Poland. I visited two factories in Poland last year and the AMS Flight in Slovenia that produces DG (German) designed gliders the year before.
The manufacturing process in very labour intensive that is why much of the manufacturing has been moved to the eastern EU countries. The quality is very good.
If the "smart bits" are confined to the fuselage it should be easy to keep the cost of the basic airframe down to £35k, allowing £5k for the engine makes for a very cheap package.
(If requested I can explain and provide links to how such craft are manufactured, and how plug-n-play wings are easy).
BTW: the birds on the wings are not ravens but buzzards.
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Re: UK reveals details of six new UAV programmes + Picture of Raven
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February 20 2006, 6:21 PM
Thanks for the info! I also think that they'll build them new. The question is if BAe wants to have the building in house or has to have it in house (assuming they're assuming that Herti sells well they need a good production capability which can deliver good amounts, besides even production brings some profit I would imagine)
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UK reveals details of six new UAV programmes + Picture of Raven
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February 20 2006, 7:13 PM
2 Rob
I do not agree with some of your points.
The Herti-1a is a stubby, very short wings, 10m is easy, at present we can do 30m.
The airframe is the cheap part, even at 30m only £100k+ for a 60:1 glide ratio, the smarts in the middle are where the profits are to be made.
The basic airframe cannot easily be produce in UK, because we do not have the skills required and because the labour costs are too large.
We shall be involved in the design, but there is no chance we could compete for production of the basic airframe. (We might hold the design rights and provide FOC the moulds required to make the basic components).
Lets just do what we do best and let others have their slice of the cake.
[If you want to fly some high performance plastic I could arrange that too].
Chris
This message has been edited by chrisrobsoar on Feb 20, 2006 7:37 PM
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Re: UK reveals details of six new UAV programmes + Picture of Raven
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February 20 2006, 7:26 PM
Raven looks really cool!
Don't expect a certain Frenchman to respond to this thread...He's already seen it and been rushed to hospital with an aneurysm, apparently he hasn't yet stopped murmuring "TWIST&SPIN&TWIST&SPIN&TWIST&SPIN....." let's say a prayer for him.
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Ipsa scientia potestas est.
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Re: UK reveals details of six new UAV programmes + Picture of Raven
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February 20 2006, 8:22 PM
He probably is terribly shocked, but if something is remarkable about him then his ability to turn a blind eye on the given facts and just pretend he was right all along. I think this week will be terrible for him, first Raven etc... then perhaps soon the Saudi deal, then reports of Tornados with active EScan Radars.....oh I fear the worst for the favourite forum clown.
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Re: UK reveals details of six new UAV programmes + Picture of Raven
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February 20 2006, 8:45 PM
@Chris:
At time of writing I didn't know that the Polish firm still builds them, so yes BAe might just subcontract them even though I hope they'll build them themselves.
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Re: UK reveals details of six new UAV programmes + Picture of Raven
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February 20 2006, 9:22 PM
Hi all i am new here i havent figure out how to use this board yet. but i herd the uk was building its own stealth plane called halo does anyone now if this is true
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Re: UK reveals details of six new UAV programmes + Picture of Raven
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February 21 2006, 1:01 AM
Haha - where the hell is Thunder anyway, I was expecting a massive flame war with LOTS of copied/pasted pictures of the Neuron and broken-english insults hurled in all directions...
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Re: UK reveals details of six new UAV programmes + Picture of Raven
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February 21 2006, 1:04 PM
Raven looks cooler from a material point of view, was Corax composites or just aluminium (they probably couldn't be bothered to build a composite on for a subscale strategic UAV)?
Is it known to someone if the second Raven has an other configuration (wings?)?
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