OWEGO, N.Y.–A competition to quickly manufacture a fleet of unmanned helicopters for delivery of supplies to remote locations in Afghanistan is now under way, with Boeing [BA] and a Kaman Aerospace–Lockheed Martin [LMT]team having received contracts to demonstrate their aircraft by the end of the year.
A Marine Corps request for proposals for an “Immediate Cargo Unmanned Aerial System” was issued in May. The plan called for an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) capable of delivering ten tons of supplies at high altitudes and across distances 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 A160T Hummingbird; the Mist Mobility Integrated Systems Technology (MMIST) SnowGoose; and the Kaman K-MAX intermeshing-rotor helicopter.
The Marines have awarded Boeing $500,000 and Kaman, along with its partner Lockheed Martin, $860,000 to demonstrate their respective helicopters by February.
The K-MAX is in use in private industry–primarily in logging and construction–as a manned system. It can transport some 6,000 tons of supplies, according to Lockheed Martin officials. Lockheed Martin provides the communication links and the datalinks and interfaces that allow for an unmanned capability.
Company Vice President Dan Spoor told reporters here that Lockheed and Kaman earlier this month conducted testing at high altitudes in Colorado and that those tests “confirmed that we can meet all the Marine Corps’ requirements.”
Army observers will also be involved in the demonstration phase, according to Kaman, but the service has not committed to joining the program.
“We just got debriefed by the customer yesterday after the award for the demonstration contract, and what the Marines had indicated was that they want to go to immediate deployment, they’re in the process of deciding exactly what the acquisition will look like,” he said.
Naval Air Systems Command is the contracting authority for the project. Spoor said he expects the Marine Corps to define the terms of the procurement effort in the next few months.
The Marine Corps Systems Command at Quantico, Va., 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 Robert Gates recently requested additional funding for more heavy-lift helicopters for Afghanistan. An unmanned option, however, is not yet available. The Marine Corps’ goal is to field the new “aerial trucks” next year.