QUANTICO, Va.–A competition for a contract to quickly manufacture and field a fleet of unmanned helicopters capable of delivering supplies to Marines deployed in remote locations in Afghanistan will kick off with a demonstration in December, according to an industry source.
A Marine Corps request for proposals (RFP) for an “Immediate Cargo Unmanned Aerial System” was issued in May. The plan calls for an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) 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 next year.
Competitors included the Northrop Grumman [NOC] Fire Scout; the Boeing [BA] A160T Hummingbird; the Mist Mobility Integrated Systems Technology (MMIST) SnowGoose; and the Kaman [KAMN] K-MAX intermeshing-rotor helicopter. This summer, the Marines awarded Boeing $500,000 and Kaman, along with its partner Lockheed Martin [LMT], $860,000 to demonstrate their respective helicopters (Defense Daily, Aug. 14).
“We’re preparing for the demo in December,” Stirling Hunter, Boeing’s business development manager for the A160T, recently told sister publication Defense Daily at the Modern Day Marine trade show here.
“We’ll do ours one week, and the other team will demonstrate the following week.”
Hunter said the demonstration will include sling-load hauling and that the companies may also be asked to showcase a cargo pod mounted on the underside of their aircraft. The pod is a smaller payload geared toward resupplying maneuvering troops very quickly.
According to Hunter, Boeing will conduct another pod test demonstration. He said the Hummingbird has hauled up to 1,000 pounds in pod formation. The Marine Corps requirement is currently a payload of 1,500 pounds while hovering at 12,000 feet.
“If the requirements were relaxed, we could carry more,” Hunter said. The Hummingbird is faster than the K-Max and can fly longer without refueling, according to Hunter, while the K-Max can haul much larger loads.
The K-MAX is in use in private industry–primarily in logging and construction–as a manned system. Lockheed Martin provides the communication links and the datalinks and interfaces that allow for an unmanned capability. Lockheed Martin officials have said that the aircraft can meet all the requirements in the RFP.
Naval Air Systems Command is the contracting authority for the project. The Marine Corps Systems Command at Quantico developed the urgent requirement for a cargo-hauling UAV that can resupply troops with provisions and other materials at forward operating bases in Afghanistan.
The Marines plan to reduce the danger and expense of resupplying troops in such remote outposts. Ground supply convoys in the country are vulnerable to roadside bombs and ambushes, and the rough terrain and poor road conditions cause costly damage to trucks over time.
Defense Secretary Gates recently requested additional funding for more heavy-lift helicopters for Afghanistan. An unmanned option is not, however, yet available. The Marine Corps’ goal is to field the new “aerial trucks” next year.