Aerovironment, Kratos to Develop Ability to Launch Loitering UAVs from High Speed UAS

AeroVironment and Kratos Defense & Security Systems have announced a strategic relationship to develop the integration of tube-launched UAS and tactical missile systems into long-range, high speed unmanned systems for their delivery into denied environments.

Kratos and AeroVironment’s first collaborative project will demonstrate the ability to launch and control a small, tube-launched loitering aircraft from a larger runway-independent unmanned aircraft.

Trace Stevenson, vice president and deputy general manager of AeroVironment’s UAS business said about the partnership, “we aim to demonstrate the deployment of large quantities of smart systems that overwhelm and disable enemy systems, while bending the cost curve to make it financially prohibitive for unfriendly nations to challenge our armed forces.”

“Kratos and AeroVironment offer complementary capabilities while sharing an intense focus on disruptive and affordable unmanned aircraft solutions for the US DoD,” said Steve Fendley, president of Kratos Unmanned Systems Division.

“Deploying AeroVironment’s tube-launched UAS and tactical missiles from Kratos’ long-range jet UAS creates an opportunity to substantially increase the stand-off range of our existing technologies. An affordable, comprehensive mission solution will be ready in months, not years,” Fendley said.

The overall system-of-system effectiveness will be evaluated for its ability to coordinate the effects of the smaller AeroVironment systems, relay useful information back to the Kratos mothership, and either pass information back to a ground control station or act upon that information to modify mission tasking.