Textron Systems Corporation, a Textron Inc. (NYSE: TXT) company, announced that it has been notified of a successful down select in the competition for the U.S. Army’s Future Tactical Unmanned Aircraft System (FTUAS) Increment-2 Program. The company is offering its Aerosonde® Hybrid Quad (HQ) in support of the FTUAS program. Built to support the key requirements of the Army’s Brigade Combat Teams (BCTs), the agile Aerosonde HQ platform offers multi-mission capability with proven reliability built upon a system with over 600,000 flight hours of performance. The size, weight and power profile of the system offers the mission performance of larger airframes with a rigorously streamlined footprint, two-person transport and a short setup time for superior tactical advantage.
The aircraft is equipped to deliver day/night full-motion video, wide area surveillance, communications relay, signals intelligence and more. Preparing for the BCT requirements of tomorrow, Textron Systems continues to invest in integrating and demonstrating additional payloads and equipment onto its Aerosonde HQ system to optimize the Army’s low-risk path to future capabilities. Textron Systems supports several U.S. Department of Defense customers around the globe with variants of its Aerosonde system, establishing a proven, timely and cost-effective infrastructure for production, training, spares, repairs, logistics and technology modernization. This mature ecosystem enables customers to field and sustain solutions with confidence.
“We look forward to demonstrating why we believe the Aerosonde HQ is the right unmanned system to carry the Army forward into the future,” said Wayne Prender, Senior Vice President of Air Systems. “In its 4.8 configuration tailored for the Army BCT’s mission, our system distinguishes itself with its use of heavy fuel to simplify logistics and its efficient transportability whether by helicopters or tactical vehicle. We have designed Aerosonde to MOSA [Modular Open Systems Approach] standards. With an open approach, there’s a proven ability to rapidly inject capabilities, behaviors and payloads developed by industry, government and academic partners. With our long history of working alongside the BCTs, we’re prepared to deliver a fully integrated platform loaded with the next generation of capabilities.”
Textron Systems is a world leader in unmanned air, surface and land products, services and support founded on the combined expertise in our family of brands that includes Textron Systems, Howe & Howe, Lycoming, and ATAC. The company harness the unlimited power of teamwork to solve incredible problems across seven specialized domains: air, land, sea, propulsion, weapon systems, electronic systems and test, training & simulation. From product development and manufacturing to training, operations and support, the company integrate and offer ingenious and advanced solutions to support defense, aerospace, and other customer missions. Textron Inc. is a multi-industry company that leverages its global network of aircraft, defense, industrial and finance businesses to provide customers with innovative solutions and services. Textron is known around the world for its powerful brands such as Bell, Cessna, Beechcraft, Pipistrel, Jacobsen, Kautex, Lycoming, E-Z-GO, Arctic Cat, and Textron Systems.
