Posted by Heath on Oct 25, 2009 Skylark I is a miniature unmanned aerial vehicle. It is designed as a manpacked system for tactical surveillance and reconnaissance. Skylark is launched by hand. The payload consists of daylight CCD or optional FLIR for night operations. During operation, it sends real-time video to a portable ground station. Recovery involves a deep stall maneuver, landing on a small inflatable...

Posted by Heath on Oct 25, 2009 The Boeing F/A-18E/F Super Hornet is a supersonic carrier-capable fighter/ground-attack aircraft. The F/A-18E single seater and F/A-18F two-seater are larger and more advanced derivative of the F/A-18C and D Hornet. The Super Hornet entered service with the United States Navy in 1999, replacing the F-14 Tomcat since 2006, and serves alongside the original Hornet. In 2007, the Royal...

Posted by Heath on Oct 25, 2009 The AH-64 Apache is an all-weather day-night military attack helicopter with four-bladed main and tail rotors and a crew of two pilots who sit in tandem. The main fixed armament is a 30 mm M230 Chain Gun under the aircraft’s nose. It can also carry a mixture of AGM-114 Hellfire and Hydra 70 rocket pods on four hardpoints mounted on its stub-wing pylons. The AH-64 is the...

Posted by Heath on Oct 25, 2009 The A-10 Thunderbolt II is an American single-seat, twin-engine, straight-wing jet aircraft developed by Fairchild-Republic for the United States Air Force to provide close air support (CAS) of ground forces by attacking tanks, armored vehicles, and other ground targets, with a limited air interdiction capability. It is the first U.S. Air Force aircraft designed exclusively for...

Posted by Heath on Oct 25, 2009 The Northrop Grumman (formerly Ryan Aeronautical) RQ-4 Global Hawk (known as Tier II+ during development) is an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) used by the United States Air Force as a surveillance aircraft. (more…) Popularity: 1%...

Posted by Heath on Oct 25, 2009 The Northrop Grumman X-47 Pegasus is a demonstration Unmanned Combat Aerial Vehicle. The X-47 began as part of DARPA’s J-UCAS program, and is now part of the United States Navy’s UCAS-D program to create a carrier-based unmanned aircraft. Unlike the Boeing X-45, initial Pegasus development was company-funded. The original vehicle carries the designation X-47A, while the...

Posted by Heath on Oct 25, 2009 The Lockheed AC-130 gunship is a heavily-armed ground-attack aircraft. The basic airframe is manufactured by Lockheed, and Boeing is responsible for the conversion into a gunship and for aircraft support. It is a variant of the C-130 Hercules transport plane. The AC-130A Gunship II superseded the AC-47 Gunship I in Vietnam. (more…) Popularity: 1%...

Posted by Heath on Oct 25, 2009 The MQ-1 Predator is an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) which the United States Air Force describes as a MALE (medium-altitude, long-endurance) UAV system. It can serve in a reconnaissance role and fire two AGM-114 Hellfire missiles. The aircraft, in use since 1995, has seen combat over Afghanistan, Pakistan, Bosnia, Serbia, Iraq, and Yemen. It is a remote-controlled aircraft....

Posted by Heath on Oct 25, 2009 Highlights of portions of 19 test flights which began in December 2006. The white paint on the left side of the jet is to provide information on the pattern of fuel dumping, a part of the ongoing testing objectives. (more…) Popularity: 1%...

Posted by Heath on Oct 25, 2009 (more…) Popularity: 1%...