AeroVironment (AV) (AVAV) yesterday announced cumulative program funding of more than $120 million with the government exercise of an option to build a third Global Observer aircraft for the Joint Capability Technology Demonstration (JCTD) program.
Since the program began, there have been six contract options exercised. AV was awarded the initial $57 million contract for a three-year development program in September 2007.
“Global Observer is an entirely new solution designed to deliver affordable persistence for intelligence, surveillance, reconnaissance and communications through a high altitude unmanned aircraft system with a flight duration of up to one week,” Tim Conver, AV CEO, said in a statement. “This and previous option exercises represent continued conviction regarding the value that Global Observer will provide and validation of the effectiveness of our joint AV, supplier and customer team in developing this important new solution.”
Each completed Global Observer aircraft will take off from and land on a runway, and will have a payload capacity of approximately 400 pounds, the company said in a statement. A system consisting of two or more Global Observer aircraft flying sequentially would provide seamless, persistent intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) and communications relay over any area of interest around the globe in a manner expected to be much more cost effective and flexible than existing alternatives.
The order for the third aircraft comes at the midpoint of the JCTD and follows a series of milestones in design, development and testing of the Global Observer system, including the successful Preliminary Design Review and Critical Design Review.
In 2007, the Office of the Secretary of Defense designated U.S. Special Operations Command as the lead of several government organizations funding the Global Observer JCTD program.
The JCTD is intended to demonstrate the tactical utility of a hydrogen-powered unmanned aerial system for long duration–up to seven day–missions at altitudes from 55,000 to 65,000 feet.
Global Observer builds on nearly two decades of AV’s development and flight experience with stratospheric unmanned aircraft systems, including the record-setting Pathfinder and Helios solar-powered aircraft.
To date, AV has received contract option exercises for the development, fabrication and testing of three aircraft, two launch and recovery elements, Systems Integration Laboratory testing and other development items. Operation of the advanced hydrogen-fueled power generation system at simulated atmospheric conditions in an altitude chamber continues after previous successful, multi-day tests.