ucas

X-47B makes historic carrier launch

The X-47B prototype on Tuesday flew off an aircraft carrier and into the history books.

Today's achievement, the first-ever catapult launch of an unmanned aircraft from the flight deck of a carrier, promises to open up a new chapter in the annals of naval aviation.

The X-47B Unmanned Combat Air System demonstrator launched from the deck of the USS George H.W. Bush at 11:18 a.m. ET off the coast of Virginia. It executed several planned low approaches to the carrier -- a carrier landing will take place at a later time -- and then flew across … Read more

Navy's X-47B makes first arrested landing

The U.S. Navy's X-47B is one step closer to being ready to start making test flights off of aircraft carriers after completing its first-ever arrested landing.

According to the Navy, the X-47B, also known as the Unmanned Combat Air System (UCAS), successfully grabbed hold of a special arrester cable with its tailhook, quickly stopping the aircraft during the May 4 test. That marked an important milestone in the development of the UCAS program.

The jet-powered X-47B is a prototype meant to fly autonomously, unlike many drones such as the Predator, which are usually flown remotely by ground-station-based pilots. … Read more

Unmanned X-47B aircraft completes sea trial

We now know that the pilotless X-47B aircraft has its sea legs.

The prototype X-47B Unmanned Combat Air System(PDF) this week completed its first at-sea tests as it gets ready to take off from and land on an aircraft carrier sometime in 2013, a first in naval aviation history.

That eventual flight will be the big moment for the X-47B. But the test phase that just ended is no small potatoes. It's a tricky thing for any aircraft to maneuver around the hectic, cramped, and crowded space of a carrier flight deck. In the test phase that just … Read more

Carrier-bound X-47B drone passes remote-control test

How do you drive a jet-powered drone around the deck of an aircraft carrier? If you've ever guided a remote-control toy car around your kitchen floor, you'll have an idea.

Northrop Grumman said today that it has done its first shore-based tests of a wireless handheld controller that can steer its X-47B unmanned aerial vehicle, a key step toward getting the UAV ready for flight tests on an aircraft carrier in 2013.

In the trial run, which took place earlier this month, Northrop Grumman and the U.S. Navy used the project's Control Display Unit to roll … Read more

2011 Samsung monitor preview: Central Station, now boarding

This is part two of our three-part early-2011 Samsung monitor preview that began on Monday.

During Samsung's CES press conference, the company debuted a product difficult for me to wrap my head around from the remote vantage of a stage demo. It wasn't until I actually saw the device running at Samsung's booth that I understood what the company was going for.

Samsung refers to Central Station as an IT hub. It's a standalone monitor with a number of connection inputs on its base. First, you connect your desktop peripherals (keyboard, mouse, etc.) via USB to … Read more

Boeing aims sky-high with 'Phantom Ray'

Boeing's experimental X-45 unmanned aircraft could soon be reincarnated as a prototype with a name straight out of the comic books.

The aerospace giant said Friday that it intends to get its "Phantom Ray" technology demonstrator up in the air for its first flight in December 2010. The aircraft, intended as a test bed for advanced air systems, would make a total of 10 flights over a six-month stretch to show off its skills in missions ranging from surveillance to attack to autonomous aerial refueling.

Late in 2009, lab testing will begin for the unmanned aerial vehicle (… Read more