NORTHROP'S UNMANNED PEGASUS NOW RATED 'X'.Byline: Daily News RIDGECREST - Northrop Grumman Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE: NOC) is an aerospace and defense conglomerate that is the result of the 1994 purchase of Grumman by Northrop. The company is the third largest defense contractor for the U.S. Corp.'s unmanned Pegasus demonstration aircraft has received a designation as an experimental aircraft. Pegasus will carry the designation X-47A, and a refined version expected to be designated the X-47B is planned to be built under the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency-Navy Unmanned Combat Air Vehicle The Unmanned Combat Air Vehicle (UCAV) or "combat drones" is the name of a new class of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs). They differ from ordinary UAVs, because they are designed to deliver weapons (attack targets) – possibly with a great degree of autonomy. program. ``Reserved for programs that advance new and challenging aviation concepts, the 'X' designation for Pegasus acknowledges its significance and secures its position in aviation history,'' said David Mazur, program manager for Pegasus. Designed with stealth features and shaped like a kite, Pegasus is constructed largely with composite materials. The aircraft measures 27.9 feet long and has a nearly equal wingspan of 27.8 feet. One of the first tasks of the Pegasus flight program will be to demonstrate acceptable aerodynamic flying qualities suitable for operations from an aircraft carrier. First flight is planned for late this year at the Naval Weapons Center at China Lake. Northrop Grumman is performing trade studies, analysis and preliminary design for the Navy unmanned combat air vehicle (UCAV-N UCAV-N Unmanned Combat Air Vehicle - Navy ) under a $12 million contract with DARPA DARPA: see Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency. (Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency) The name given to the U.S. Advanced Research Projects Agency during the 1980s. It was later renamed back to ARPA. and the U.S. Navy. The goal of the joint DARPA/Navy project is to demonstrate the technical feasibility for a unmanned aircraft Unmanned Aircraft (UA) is a term used in the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) definition of Unmanned Aircraft System (UAS). UA refers to the aircraft portion of the system required to operate it, also known as Unmanned Aerial Vehicle. to watch and attack enemy forces. The UCAV-N will help other weapons find targets, attack targets itself and check out damage afterward. Northrop Grumman's Integrated Systems Sector unveiled its design for a company-funded unmanned air vehicle (UAV UAV Unmanned Aerial Vehicle UAV Unmanned Air Vehicle UAV Unmanned Aerospace Vehicle UAV Unmanned Airborne Vehicle UAV Uninhabited Air Vehicle UAV Urban Assault Vehicle UAV Unpiloted Aerial Vehicle (less common) ) called Pegasus in February. The Pegasus UAV is scheduled for completion this summer in Northrop Grumman ISS's Air Combat Systems unit in El Segundo. |
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